


With You

by Babykihyuk



Category: Monsta X (Band)
Genre: Age Regression, Caretaker Minhyuk, Centered around kihyunghyuk but the others are important too, It is a coping method, Little Hyungwon, Little Space, M/M, Multi, Please don't relate age regression to bdsm or kinks, Starts off as angst but its really cute, Still Idols, Stuffed animals and more cute stuff, little kihyun
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-14
Updated: 2019-03-05
Packaged: 2019-03-18 11:06:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 23
Words: 63,159
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13680438
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Babykihyuk/pseuds/Babykihyuk
Summary: It starts off with Kihyun having a nightmare, and thank god Hyungwon wakes up easily.OrKihyun is reluctant to reveal he is a little, but he learns his friend is too.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I spent a month writing all the way to chapter 6. So if you don't like it, don't read it. It's gonna be really cute later on I swear.

Kihyun wakes up sweating. The room feels too hot, and his entire body is shaking. He feels disoriented and terrified. All he remembers is he was being chased by someone in all black.

He lets out a soft whimper.

Kihyun has always been one if the strongest members mentally. He doesn't show weakness and cry like Hoseok, and he doesn't get scared like Jooheon. He isn't easily scared and he doesn't go to the members for comfort. This time however, he is absolutely terrified. He doesn't want to sleep or even be alone. The room is pitch black, and that doesn't help his nerves at all.

He likes to keep up his image as confident and controlling. He gets nervous if he isn't in control. He doesn't go to anyone for comfort besides Minhyuk. It's not like him, but this time he knows he can't stay in his own bed. The problem is most people would make fun of him. If he went to the two youngest members, they would surely tease him. Hyunwoo would offer no comfort, and Hoseok would also get scared. Minhyuk would baby him  _too_ much, so that leaves him with Hyungwon, the member he is least close to.

It's not that he doesn't like Hyungwon because he does. Hyungwon is hard to hate; he is pretty in every way, smart, and usually kind. Kihyun just isn't close to him like he used to be. He tends to spend his time with the three eldest members. He also can't deny he has weird feelings for Hyungwon; he gets nervous when they sit side by side or when Hyungwon accidentally falls asleep on him. It's small infatuation that can't go anywhere because they are in the same group.

This time he is left no choice but to go to the younger.

If Kihyun finds Minhyuk, he will definitely fall into his little space. He is already  _so close_ , but he can't slip in front of everyone else.

He shakily climbs down to the floor, whimpering when his feet touch the ground. He bites his lip hard because he is scared he will start crying. He can't do that with the two youngest in the same room.

Kihyun can't be little right now, not with everyone home.

He quickly runs out of the room and into the room next door. It's dark, but he has the room memorized. He knows Hyunwoo is sleeping in the bottom bunk with Hoseok curled up next to him; Hoseok's bed is to the side and completely empty. Hyungwon's bed is on above Hyunwoo's.

Kihyun quietly climbs the ladder but doesn't climb into the bed. "Hyungwon," he says weakly.

The other doesn't stir, so he pushes Hyungwon. At this point, Kihyun is close to tears.

_What if_ _something_ _pulls me down from the ladder?_

"Hyungwon!"

He is finally met with tired eyes. "Yeah, Kihyun?"

He sniffles. "Can I sleep with you?"

Hyungwon moves over, allowing Kihyun to climb in the bed and lie down on his side with his back pressed closely against Hyungwon's chest.

"You don't have to sleep so close to me, there's more bed," he mumbles.

"I had a nightmare," he turns around to face Hyungwon. "I'm scared." He sniffles again.

Hyungwon is wide awake now. "Oh, Kihyun, why didn't you go to the older members?"

Kihyun whimpers again, so Hyungwon places a hand on his cheek, rubbing his thumb against the flesh. "Shhhh, you're safe. I'm right here. I've never seen you so scared before. You're sweating and shaking." He pauses. "I think you're sick. Last time you were sick was the last time you had a nightmare." He pulls the blankets over both of them.

"I'm not sick," Kihyun tries to argue.

It makes sense though. He felt terrible yesterday at practice, so he took it out on everyone by snapping. He had a bad headache when they performed, too. He doesn't get sick often; the last time was a year ago. He wishes he would have taken better care of himself so he wouldn't be in this situation.

"Get some sleep, mayne Minhyuk will take care of you tomorrow."

Everyone can see the clear bond between Minhyuk and Kihyun. At home, they are constantly attached. Kihyun doesn't know why, but he suddenly feels uncomfortable that Hyungwon pointed it out.

Kihyun returns to his original position. He is shaking; he feels so  _cold_. He whimpers for the millionth time, so Hyungwon puts an arm around his waist and gently shushes him. Kihyun can feel Hyungwon's bare legs against his own, and he presses his legs back further in search of warmth.

Kihyun lets himself relax.

-

Two hours later, he is up again, shaking Hyungwon. The said male sleepily lifts his head. His lips are slightly parted and his black hair is everywhere, but he still looks perfect. Kihyun doesn't have time to admire him though.

"Take me to the bathroom," he urgently begs.

It's the fastest Kihyun has ever seen him get up. Even with his weak arms, Hyungwon picks up Kihyun and dashes to the bathroom, placing him in front of the toilet. He sits on the side of the bathtub next to Kihyun and leans down to rub the elder's back.

Hyungwon watches in horror as Kihyun empties his stomach. It's disgusting, really, but he can't leave the main vocalist alone, especially since his small hand desperately clutches onto Hyungwon's larger free hand. Kihyun whimpers before throwing up again.

_Ki, why_ _didn't_ _you go to the_ _older_ _members who know what they are doing?_

Hyungwon reaches for two washcloths when he decides Kihyun is done for now. He releases Kihyun's hand and turns on the water in the sink just long enough to wet the washcloths before turning it off.

"Can you turn towards me?" Hyungwon asks in the most gentle voice he can manage. He sits back down on the edge of the bathtub.

Slowly, Kihyun turns to nearly sit in between Hyungwon's legs. Hyungwon leans forward and wipes Kihyun's lips using one of the washcloths before tossing it in the dirty laundry basket. He folds up the other one and holds it to Kihyun's forehead, dampening his light colored hair.

Hyungwon hesitantly asks, "Ki, want me to get Hyunwoo or Hoseok?"

"No," he pushes Hyungwon's hand away and presses his face against Hyungwon's bare knee. "No, please. I'm not weak."

"You're not weak," Hyungwon agrees, carding his fingers through Kihyun's hair. "You're just sick."

"I'm not sick," he weakly protests, though shivers and moves closer.

_He must be cold. Underwear and a t-shirt_ _isn't_ _exactly warm._

"Please, I'll get one of the older members to take care of you. Ki, I'm not-"

"No!" Kihyun looks him in the eye. "Please. I just want you."

Hyungwon and Kihyun were close when they first debuted, anyone could see that. They always were happy to be paired together on Deokspatch or just enjoyed each other's company. After the All In era, they slipped apart. Hyungwon began to spend more time with the two youngest, so Kihyun naturally spent more time Minhyuk. He always felt nervous when Hyungwon touched him a bit too much.

In conclusion, Kihyun _kinda_ likes the taller male.

Hyungwon speaks cautiously, "Okay, then are you ready to head back to bed?"

Kihyun shivers before shaking his head. "Sick," he mumbles.

"Okay Ki, let me go get you some water and a blanket. We can stay in here for a bit."

Kihyun reluctantly moves to let Hyungwon by, and he watches Hyungwon leave.

He throws up again before Hyungwon returns, and this time tears fall from his eyes. He shakes uncontrollably and wipes off his mouth.

"H-hyungwon?" He whispers.

Kihyun isn't sure how much time passes, but Hyungwon returns with a bottle of water and Kihyun's blanket. His eyes widen when he sees Kihyun crying. Kihyun looks so small; his hair is sticking up everywhere and he is pouting. He rubs his eyes and whimpers.

"Oh Ki, what's wrong?"

"I-I threw up again and you weren't here and didn't come back for a long time!"

The main vocalist is somewhere between little and big Kihyun. His words are slightly broken, but he doesn't start baby talking.

Hyungwon sits on the side of the bathtub again and puts the blanket around Kihyun's shoulders. "I'm sorry. When I went to get your blanket, I found Jooheon half-awake. He was complaining that he couldn't climb into your bed." He uncaps the water. "Drink some, please."

Kihyun takes the water and drinks nearly half of the bottle before handing it back to Hyungwon, letting the taller put cap back on. The main vocalist changes positions to sit facing Hyungwon so he can press his head against Hyungwon's knee to have something to lean on.

Hyungwon quietly pets Kihyun's hair. He isn't sure what to say. Normally, Kihyun is independent; he doesn't need anyone. He refuses to show any signs of weakness, everyone knows this; that is why they all go to Kihyun in search of comfort. Yet, Kihyun has never had anyone to comfort him in return.

At least not that Hyungwon knew of.

"Can we just sleep here?" Kihyun quietly asks.

Hyungwon sighs; he is exhausted but worried about Kihyun. He definitely doesn't want to wake up to Kihyun throwing up in his room though, so maybe it's a good idea to stay put.

The visual climbs into the bathtub, one of his legs inside and the other weirdly hanging out. "Come here."

Kihyun practically crawls over to him and settles in between his legs. He adjusts the blanket to lie on top of him so they can both be warm. It doesn't matter that the lights are on or that the door is open, Kihyun falls asleep in less than 60 seconds.

Hyungwon wraps his arms around Kihyun's waist so that his hands rest on the younger's stomach. Overall, it's really uncomfortable; he is sure he will be in pain tomorrow. Regardless, he lets his eyes fall closed.

-

"Hyungwonnie, why are you and Kihyun sleeping in the bathtub?" Minhyuk asks.

Hyungwon's eyes open slowly to see Minhyuk and Hyunwoo standing in the middle of the bathroom staring at them. Kihyun still lies on his chest, and Hyungwon is pretty sure he is mumbling something in his sleep.

Minhyuk looks incredible to Hyungwon. He seems naturally dominate, and Hyungwon just wants Minhyuk to tell him how good he was for taking care of Kihyun. He shakes the thought away.

_You're twenty_ _four._

Its the first time Hyungwon has felt like that in a while.

He should have expected it since he babied Kihyun last night.

"Kihyun is sick."

"So, you are sleeping in the bathtub in case he throws up?" Hyunwoo says with a questionable voice. "Hyungwon, why did you not come get me?" His voice turns stern. "You know that if someone is sick you find me or Kihyun. You have never even taken care of someone."

His voice slowly becoming louder causes Kihyun to stir. He immediately whimpers, clutching onto the blankets. In an effort to calm him, Hyungwon gently rubs his stomach.

"He didn't want anyone else."

Hyunwoo grabs the water bottle and hands it to Hyungwon, allowing the younger to open it and hold it up at Kihyun's lips. He slowly tilts it back, and Kihyun drinks the remaining liquid.

"Kihyun, you should have come to me," Minhyuk says softly. "Let's get you out and into some clean clothes."

The blonde male rushes over to the bathtub. Kihyun lifts up his arms, allowing Minhyuk to lift him up.

Kihyun sleepily grips onto Minhyuk, head falling on his shoulder. "Wanna...sleep."

Hyungwon is envious. He wants Minhyuk to carry him too.

_They don't want to baby you._

He watches Minhyuk take Kihyun away, and Hyunwoo gives him a knowing look before leaving him alone too.

Everyone always leaves him, big or little.

He pushes the thoughts to the side. He can't act like that anymore.

-

"I want Hyungwon!" He hears Kihyun whine like a child to Hoseok.

Hyunwoo passed Kihyun off to Hoseok when he left to go to practice early. Currently, they are sitting on the couch because Kihyun is throwing a fit and refuses to eat.

"Well, what about me? Hyunwoo said I'm in charge!" Hoseok defends.

It's not that Hoseok is jealous; he is not. He is just offended that Kihyun would rather have one of the younger members.

Kihyun pulls the blanket further around his shoulders and pouts. "I want Hyungwon. He's better."

"Stop acting like you're a kid, Ki. Come on, it doesn't matter who takes care of you. I just need you to take this medicine." He motions to the spoon of liquid in his hand.

Kihyun hits it, and the medicine spills onto the floor. Hoseok sighs in defeat and stands up. When he returns 30 seconds later, Hyungwon comes with him.

Hyungwon has a weird feeling in his stomach; he doesn't want to take care of Kihyun when he is acting like a kid. He doesn't want to be near anyone if they want to act like they are younger.

He can't risk it.

The main vocalist jumps up from the couch to run and hide behind Hyungwon. "Tell him to leave me alone!"

"Hoseok, could you kindly leave Kihyun alone?"

Hoseok laughs softly. "Yeah, Ki. I will." He grabs his phone off of the couch and gives Hyungwon an unreadable glance before leaving to his shared room with Hyunwoo and Hyungwon.

"Seok's a meanie," Kihyun mumbles, sitting on the couch and wrapping the blanket around himself again. He pulls his legs up on the couch with him, sitting the way they make kids in elementary school sit.

_Please stop acting like a little kid before I break._

Hyungwon hums. "But now he is gone and you still haven't taken your medicine." He sits next to Kihyun and gently pets his hair, resulting in Kihyun resting his head on Hyungwon's shoulder.

The one thing Hyungwon  _does_  know about sick Kihyun is that he wants attention and affection. Hyungwon doesn't mind offering that, it's just that he also needs to go to dance practice soon and get the hell out of here.

Kihyun obediently opens his mouth and lifts his head away from Hyungwon's shoulder. The visual quickly spills the liquid onto the spoon before slipping the spoon in between Kihyun's lips and letting Kihyun pull it out when he is done.

Hyungwon decides to test something out. "You're such a good boy, Kihyunnie."

Kihyun's eyes light up and he smiles so hard that his eyes disappear. Hyungwon feels an unsettling feeling in his stomach.

He distracts himself by trying to find some reason to get up.

Afrer scanning Kihyun up and down, Hyungwon frowns when he realizes Minhyuk didn't put pants on Kihyun.

"Hey Ki, let me go get a pair of my sweatpants for you to wear. They will warm you up."

The main vocalist nods, and he patiently waits until Hyungwon returns with a black pair of sweatpants (not surprising. Isn't his entire closet black these days?).

"Alright, be a good boy and stand up for me."

Kihyun stands up and lifts one of his legs to let Hyungwon pull the pants on. Once they are on, he sits back down and giggles.

"They're super!" Kihyun grins.

Hyungwon sits next to him. "Yeah, but they look really cute."

Kihyun usually gets embarrassed when he is called cute. He tells everyone he'd rather be called "sexy" rather than cute and small. Regardless, this time Kihyun smiles, revealing his teeth. His cheek bones are more obvious than before; he looks so cute Hyungwon could cry.

"Kihyun, it's about time to get some sleep, okay?" The eyes the clock as he notices the other members slip out the door. Practice is getting closer.

"Is Ki okay?" Minhyuk asks before he goes to open the door.

"He's just sick. Can you help me get him to bed?"

Minhyuk happily drops his practice bag and walks over. "Ki, you ready for bed?" It seems like he has done this a million times before.

Kihyun lifts up his arms towards Minhyuk and allows him to pick the smaller boy up. He clings to Minhyuk's front with his legs wrapped around him.

Hyungwon follows the other visual into Kihyun's shared room and watches as he places the main vocalist in Minhyuk's bed.

All he wants to do in climb in the bed too.

The blonde pulls up the blankets over Kihyun and smiles. "You'll be okay on your own, right Ki?"

"No!"

"Well, you'll have to be; me and Hyungwon have to get going. So, why don't you tell Hyungwon bye and I'll sing you to sleep while he gets ready?" Minhyuk sits by Kihyun's feet.

Kihyun seems to wait patiently for a second, so Hyungwon turns to Minhyuk because he seems like he knows what the hell is going on.

Minhyuk explains, "He is waiting for you to kiss his forehead and tell him bye."

Hyungwon's eyes widen. He didn't expect that, but Minhyuk  _knows,_ meaning he has done it before. Why does Minhyuk know all this? What is even going on with Kihyun?

Pushing everything aside, Hyungwon crouches down as gently kisses Kihyun's forehead, receiving a giggle from the said man. "Goodnight."

_Kihyun_ _is twenty four years old, not three._

Hyungwon leaves the room to go into his own room. He searches through his clothes for another pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt to practice in, but he pauses when he hears Minhyuk softly speaking.

"Kihyun, did you have a good day?"

"Yeah! Kihyunnie a good boy."

Minhyuk quietly laughs. "Yeah, you are a good boy. I'm sure Hyungwon was happy you didn't throw a fit again."

"Kihyunnie wanna pway with Won," Kihyun whines.

"We will see, bug. I'm not sure what he will think or do, but you'll always have me, okay? No matter which Kihyun you are."

It falls silent and he can only hear Minhyuk softly singing the chorus to Beautiful. He lets himself get lost in it before he quickly grabs his clothes and changes

Hyungwon comes to the conclusion that Minhyuk and Kihyun are dating. Jealousy hits him like a train, but he tries to ignore the feeling in his chest and the tears that form in his eyes.

He can't deal with them today.

They walk in silence on the way to practice. Minhyuk doesn't ask when he sees Hyungwon's tear-stained face; he silently wraps an arm around Hyungwon, bringing him close.

Sometimes it's better not to ask.

-

Minhyuk and Hyungwon leave practice early, deciding someone needs to check on Kihyun.

When they open the door to the dorm, Hyungwon isn't sure what he expected, but he didn't expect to see Kihyun crying on the couch.

"Left me!"

Minhyuk drops his bag, leaving Hyungwon to awkwardly close the door. The taller male feels like he shouldn't see Minhyuk sit on the couch and Kihyun crawl in his lap to face him. He is intruding; he needs to get the hell away.

There's a nagging feeling of jealousy in his stomach. Yes, Kihyun is cute, but he isn't sure if he is more jealous of Kihyun or Minhyuk. He bites his lip and looks away to quietly walk to his room.

"I'm so sorry, baby. I didn't know you would wake up," Minhyuk quietly tells him, wrapping his arms around the smaller male to ensure he doesn't fall off.

"Head hurts," he sniffles.

"Hyungwon," Minhyuk glances over, watching Hyungwon stand with his hand on the doorknob to his room. "Can you get some medicine for Ki from my room? Check the bottom drawer of the dresser."

Hyungwon forces a smile and nods. He walks into Minhyuk's room and sits on the floor in front of the dresser; he is overwhelmed. Kihyun is so cute like this, but at the same time he is twenty four. He shouldn't whimper like he does or crawl into Minhyuk's lap, not to mention Kihyun is probably dating Minhyuk when they are not allowed to date anyone at all.

He opens the drawer and he sees the bottle of liquid pain medicine, but he also sees a blue pacifier. Hyungwon doesn't know to describe how it makes him feel. None of them have kids, and this is specifically in Minhyuk's drawer with the children's pain medicine.

Then it hits him.

It's not Minhyuk's.  _It's_ _Kihyun's._ He secretly  _is_ a kid. It makes sense; Minhyuk knows exactly what the vocalist wants and how to handle everything. It explains why Kihyun is acting childish. What doesn't make sense, however, is how have they kept it from the group?

His heart suddenly sinks. The signs have been there all along for the past two months.

Minhyuk and Kihyun always stay up the latest and insists that everyone else go to bed, but they are also the first members awake in the morning. Minhyuk yelled at Changkyun when he tried to go through his dresser drawer. Then there was that time that he accidently went into the bathroom backstage to see Kihyun sitting on the sink crying with Minhyuk next to him, trying to soothe him. Minhyuk had told him to get the hell out. It explains why one time he asked to make dinner and Kihyun laughed and said he didn't know how.

Truthfully, he should have opened his eyes and put everything together.

Hyungwon takes the pacifier and medicine. All he wants to do is put the pacifier in his own mouth. It looks so tempting and relaxing. He feels himself nearly slip. If Kihyun is allowed, then why can't he?

_They'll leave you._

He puts the pacifier in his pocket and quietly enters the living room to sit on Kihyun's other side. The feeling of jealousy intensifies with the pacifier close to him. He wants to put it in his mouth and for Minhyuk to quietly tell him how good he is; he wants Kihyun to play with him. He hasn't fallen in his space in years.

And he can't ever again.

"I have medicine that will make you feel better."

"Hurts," Kihyun whines. For some reason, he dragged himself off of Minhyuk while Hyungwon was gone.

"I know it does," Hyungwon speaks the way you'd speak to a child. "If you take this, it will make you feel better." He takes the spoon on the table that he used earlier to give him medicine.

"No!" Kihyun shouts, moving back to sit in Minhyuk's lap.

"Baby, let Hyungwon give you some medicine, okay? We can do whatever you want afterwards." Minhyuk tries to compromise.

Kihyun shakes his head. "No!" He crosses his arms. "Hurts!"

Hyungwon decides to take a risk since Minhyuk isn't convincing enough, and he needs this thing out of his pocket.

"Hey, Ki? Come here for a second," Hyungwon pats his lap.

Sure enough, Kihyun crawls into his lap. He sits to face Hyungwon with his legs on either side of him, knees touching his hips. Hyungwon holds the spoon and medicine in one hand and ruffles Kihyun's hair with the other.

"I have a surprise in my pocket, okay? And if you're a good boy, you can have it."

Kihyun eyes Hyungwon's hoodie pocket, debating whether it's worth it. "Want now."

"Well, you have to take your medicine first." He pours the liquid on the spoon. "Open."

Kihyun opens his mouth and makes a face when Hyungwon puts the spoon in his mouth. He quickly swallows and pulls it out, throwing it on the ground.

"Bad!"

"Well," Hyungwon places the bottle on the table. "You can have the surprise now."

The main vocalist's eyes sparkle, and Hyungwon nervously eyes the door; the others could be here any moment.

He pulls out the pacifier and he sees both Minhyuk's nervous stare and Kihyun's smiling face. Kihyun opens his mouth, allowing Hyungwon to slip it in between his lips.

He just looks so  _cute._  Like a baby, he leans forward to rest his head on Hyungwon's shoulder to go to sleep. Hesitantly, Hyungwon wraps his arms around Kihyun and rubs his back. Kihyun sighs contently.

The feeling of jealousy that slipped away is back at full force. Kihyun just looks so happy to act like he is young. The pacifier is firmly in his mouth, and all Hyungwon wants to do is to take it away.

_Stop it. Stop it. Stop it._

Slowly, Hyungwon stands up and takes Kihyun into his room. He sits on Minhyuk's bed, and Minhyuk follows, sitting next to him.

"I'm sorry, Hyungwon. No one was supposed to find out. Ki is going to freak out if he wakes up and he isn't in his little space. Please don't be freaked out or-"

"Minhyuk, it's okay. I handled it, didn't I?" He forces another smile.

Minhyuk looks so happy. "You did really well. I'm sorry he's like this. No one was supposed to know."

"How did you figure out?"

Minhyuk smiles brightly. "I accidentally caught him sucking on his thumb. I decided to buy him a pacifier last month when I couldn't get him to stop. He loves that thing, cries sometimes at shows when I don't have it. He tries really hard not to slip into his space much, but he does it every few days, so I stay up late with him."

Hyungwon catches the fond look in his eyes, so he asks the question on his mind. "Are you guys dating?"

Minhyuk laughs nervously. "No, no we aren't. I'm just his caretaker."

_Caretaker._

It hurts Hyungwon physically.

Hyungwon's heart feels weird in regards to Minhyuk. He wants Minhyuk to be Kihyun's caretaker, but he also wants attention. He isn't sure what to do.

Minhyuk opens his mouth to say something, but Kihyun's phone rings from the owner's pocket.

And and chaos ensues. Kihyun starts crying loudly, his pacifier falls onto the bed. Hyungwon quickly reaches into Kihyun's sweatpants and pulls out his phone. He hands it to Minhyuk before picking up the pacifier and placing it back in Kihyun's mouth.

"Shh, I'm right here, Ki." He rubs the elder's back. "Come on, calm down for me," Hyungwon rests one hand on his neck to keep his head down.

Minhyuk answers the phone, "Hi, Hyunwoo, we are at the dorm and Kihyun is still sick so maybe everyone should stay clear of the dorm for a bit."

Kihyun's crying dies down to whimpers and sniffling, so Hyungwon mouths to Minhyuk to turn the speaker on.

_"Well, Kihyun_ _won't_ _get everyone sick,_ _it's_ _fine_ _."_

"No!" Minhyuk shouts. "He is really sick and doesn't want anyone to see him like this, so just stay away!" He quickly hangs up.

Minhyuk sits down next to Hyungwon. "Hey, sweetie. Hyungwon is going to put you down so you can get some more sleep while we make some soup, is that okay?"

Kihyun nods. "Kisses," he mumbles through the pacifier.

Hyungwon lies Kihyun down on his back and pulls the blanket on him before he hesitantly kisses Kihyun's forehead.

Minhyuk gently pushes by Hyungwon to kiss Kihyun's nose. "I love my Kihyunnie."

"Wuv you too," Kihyun says.

Minhyuk drags Hyungwon out of the room and into the kitchen. Together, mostly in silence, they make soup. Hyungwon can't stop staring, and Minhyuk occasionally meets his stare but doesn't comment.

Soon, they bring a bowl of soup into Kihyun's room, but they don't find what they expected to find.

Kihyun sits on the bed, pacifier gone. His knees are pulled to his chest and he is crying. He doesn't even look up to meet their eyes.

"I'm sorry I'm disgusting. I'm twenty four years old." Kihyun says with a surprisingly steady voice. "I'm sorry. Please just forget it."

"Kihyun." Minhyuk handles the bowl of soup to Hyungwon and moves to sit next to Kihyun. "Kihyun, I don't care if you're a little or if you're a normal twenty four year old. Even if you were a stripper, I'd still support you. I want to do everything in my power to make you feel happy and safe. If being in your little space makes that happen, then I'll gladly be your caretaker. Besides, little Kihyunnie is so cute."

Kihyun shakes his head. "Its disgusting. I know Hyungwon thinks it is. I'm supposed to be older than him, so I should act like it. It's weird to sleep with a pacifier or cry when you're left alone. I shouldn't be like this."

Hyungwon's heart breaks for him, and he 100% understands; Kihyun hates himself because he is scared of what everyone else thinks. It must have taken him a long time to open up to Minhyuk, and he clearly doesn't want Hyungwon near him.

The visual speaks up, "Kihyun, I don't think you're weird. I don't think you shouldn't act like that. I do think that we should talk about this when you aren't sick, so if you need space and time with Minhyuk, I'll leave." He hands the bowl to Minhyuk. "We will talk tomorrow. Get some rest, Ki."

He smiles gently at Kihyun, but the main vocalist refuses to speak to him. Instead, Kihyun presses himself against Minhyuk.

Hyungwon's entire body is on fire.

_Stop being jealous of him._


	2. Chapter 2

"You can't go in there!" Hyungwon stands in front of Minhyuk, Jooheon, Changkyun, and Kihyun's door.

Changkyun narrows his eyes. "And why not? That's my bedroom."

"Kihyun is sick!"

"We already slept in the living room last night," Jooheon whines.

"Well, he is still not feeling good."

It's a lie, really. The main vocalist woke up this morning feeling fine; Kihyun just needs space. As Minhyuk explained it, he just needs time with Minhyuk to steady him. Hyungwon was clearly uninvited, which partially offended him because he was the one who first dealt with sick Kihyun. Regardless, he respects Kihyun's need for space. He shouldn't get jealous just because Kihyun got to Minhyuk before Hyungwon could.

"Hyungwon," Hyunwoo interrupts the conversation. "Is something going on with him that no one but you and Minhyuk know about? You're acting suspicious."

"Nope. Ki is sick."

"I'd like to talk to him."

Sometimes, Hyungwon really hates Hyunwoo. Not because he is rude or mean, but because he has power and uses it sometimes. It's his job to watch over the members, and sometimes it just means telling Hyungwon to get out of the way.

Defeated, Hyungwon steps away, and he watches Hyunwoo open the door. Luckily, Kihyun is fast asleep, pacifier-free, and Minhyuk is sitting on the floor reading a magazine.

"OH, Hyunwoo. Hey," he says casually.

"Minhyuk, how's Kihyun?"

"Asleep."

Hyunwoo sighs, realizing he isn't going to get any information. "Well, Changkyun and Jooheon are going to sleep in here unless you can convince them to sleep in Hyungwon's bed." He leaves without another word.

Minhyuk looks at Hyungwon. "Nice going. Thanks for really protecting the door," he says sarcastically.

Hyungwon leaves the room.

_I'm_ _just_ _never enough, huh?_

_I'm disgusting._

_-_

The first incident occurs a week later at a performance. Kihyun is tugging on Hyungwon's sleeve with urgency, trying to pull him away from the stylist.

Kihyun and Minhyuk both refused to speak to him after Hyunwoo walked in on them, so he isn't going to miss a chance to redeem himself.

"Yeah, what's wrong?"

Hyungwon turns his head to see tears threatening to fall from Kihyun's eyes. He grips Hyungwon's jacket so tightly. The smaller boy looks nice in their usual Spotlight. Kihyun looks so snuggly. His hair is parted down the middle and pushed away. Overrall, the main vocalist is breathtaking, but Hyungwon is brought back to reality when Kihyun whimpers.

_Fuck,_ _fuck_ _, fuck. He is feeling little. Where the hell is Minhyuk?!_

"Come on, let me take you to the bathroom," he quietly speaks.

Ignoring the stylist, he leads Kihyun into the backstage public bathroom. Anyone could walk in, but he has bigger worries, like how Kihyun is sucking on his thumb.

And like how he wants to also.

He lifts Kihyun up to sit him on the sink. "Kihyun, what's wrong?" He uses his soft voice.

Kihyun pulls his thumb out of his mouth. "Scared."

"When's the last time you were in your little space, sweetie?" He gently cups Kihyun's face.

"A-a week ago," Kihyun's regular voice cuts in instead of his choppy wording. "What if I mess up? My throat hurts really bad, Hyungwon."

_Kihyun trusts me. Don't trust me. Shut me out, please._

"Monbebes will still love you." Hyungwon's arms drop to his sides. "It'll be okay. How bad is it?"

"My voice or me fighting myself? Because both are pretty bad," he softly confesses. "I can sing, but I'll probably lose my voice towards the end if I do the high notes."

Hyungwon takes a paper towel and wipes Kihyun's eyes. "Let's get you back out there, okay?"

Kihyun forces a smile. "I'm not weak, I'm just still recovering from being sick."

-

Kihyun comes off stage crying. His entire body shakes, but he yells at everyone not to touch him. His voice cracked in the middle of him singing for the first time in a long time. Kihyun doesn't hide, he just sits on the couch and cries, repeating "I ruined it" over and over again. 

"Kihyun," Minhyuk finally says, sternly but quietly. "Kihyun, enough."

The main vocalist calms down a bit, enough to let Minhyuk sit beside him. "Kihyun, it doesn't matter if your voice broke, Monbebes love you no matter what. They loved Jooheon when he had that stupid red hair and that time Hyungwon forgot the choreography even though he is part of the dance line, so I am sure they will still love you."

"I want to go home," he mumbles quietly and walks away to go change.

He doesn't speak again until later that night where everyone is asleep besides himself, Minhyuk, and Hyungwon. They all sit in the living room.

"I almost slipped into my little space today," Kihyun tells Minhyuk. He sits on the floor in front of the couch where Hyungwon and Minhyuk sit. "Hyungwon helped me, but I think it's time we talk about this properly as embarrassing as it is. We can't keep ignoring it."

Minhyuk hums. "I'll start. Hyungwon, I'm Kihyun's caretaker. He is in between the age of two and three. He is potty trained, so that's a plus. He can't eat on his own though, and he can't use normal cups. I just can't hide the little stuff anywhere so we make do with Kihyun spilling everything onto himself.

_Stop being jealous and just take the job of being a caretaker. No one will ever know if you do this._

Kihyun blushes, staring at the floor. "Hyungwon, if you don't want to be involved, you-"

"If you'd let me, I would like to," Hyungwon smiles, glancing at Minhyuk for a reaction. "I don't know how all this works so you'd have to teach me."

Hyungwon does like Kihyun a lot; he would just rather handle big Kihyun than little Kihyun. If it means he will get time with the pair, he will suffer if he has to.

Suddenly, Kihyun jumps on the couch in between them. His eyes shine. "R-really? You'd - you'd be willing to be another caretaker?"

Minhyuk places a hand on Kihyun's thigh in an attempt to get Kihyun to calm down. "Hyungwon, you don't have to."

"I want to. I just have a few questions."

"Shoot em."

Hyungwon stares at the pair. "What does Kihyun...do in his little space?" Every little is different; some are loud while others are quiet.

"Depends on the day." Minhyuk responds. "He likes coloring or watching TV. On days we get the house to ourselves, he likes to play imaginary games, but he is well behaved and the opposite of shy."

The visual knows Kihyun is slipping, if the way he beams at the praise is any indication, so he tries to move on. "Will we both care for him at the same time?"

Kihyun quickly nods. "Both."

"Shouldn't he have clothes and stuff?"

Minhyuk sighs. "He doesn't want to tell everyone else, so no. He has a few cars and pacifiers. He can usually hide the pacifiers, plus he doesn't sleep with one every night. He also doesn't go into his little space every day."

Hyungwon watches Kihyun fidget. "Well, that's enough questions about that for know. Kihyun, what's wrong?"

"Paci."

The eldest immediately pulls it from his sweatpants pocket and places it in Kihyun's mouth. "All better and ready to watch some cartoons?"

Hyungwon's throat  _burns._ He can't cry.

Why can't he have a pacifier too?

Kihyun nods and reaches for the remote, but instead Minhyuk takes it. "Kihyunnie is too little to use this today." Minhyuk turns on some cartoon before turning to Hyungwon. "His age fluctuates. You can tell how little he is by how he talks. One sentence words means he is around two, maybe younger. Sometimes, you can ask him." He taps Kihyun. "How old is my baby Kihyunnie?"

Kihyun looks at him with big eyes and hold up two fingers before giggling. He cuddles up to Hyungwon's side, and Minhyuk wraps an arm around Kihyun from the other side. The are pressed together in a condensed space, and even though it's a bit uncomfortable, Hyungwon feels like it fits.

It almost fits. It still feels off.

When Hyungwon is almost asleep, he hears a soft voice: "I love you both." He recognizes Minhyuk's voice easily, and he feels fingers intertwine with his own. "I wouldn't trade this moment for the world."

Hyungwon's heart feels full, like it might burst.

_Everything will be okay._


	3. Chapter 3

The three get their first full day together a week later. They have the weekend off, so most of them leave to visit family or do their own schedules. The trio rearranges their schedule to free it so they have a day together before Jooheon comes back.

At nine, they wave the other five members off before shutting the front door. The house is quiet for a minute before Minhyuk speaks up.

"I'm going back to bed."

Hyungwon is the king of sleep, and as tempting as it is to sleep more, he decides someone should be up with Kihyun just in case he slips, as much as he doesn't want to. He seems far from his little space, but you can never be too sure.

Minhyuk leaves to the bedroom and Kihyun quietly goes into the kitchen to clean. It's much louder with everyone else; the main vocalist tends to scold everyone for not cleaning as he cleans, but for once he doesn't speak up.

Hyungwon occupies himself on the couch with Hoseok's laptop he forgot to take. There's over ten videos of the choreography the pair are working on because they haven't put it together just yet. They do sections at a time, so having free time will give Hyungwon time to edit the videos together and put music over it so later they can review and practice.

Pulling up the video editor, he leans back against the couch and sighs; he wishes it was always this peaceful. Things are just easier with Minhyuk and Kihyun. They don't talk about how on Kihyun's bad days they end up squished into one bed or about Kihyun being a little. There isn't much communication in regards to that; most of it is just dealt with when it comes up. It works for them, at least Hyungwon is okay with it. Sometimes he wonders if Kihyun is okay with it, but he supposes the vocalist would speak up if he wasn't.

Hyungwon doesn't  _actually_ want to work on editing the video and tweaking the choreography, but he doesn't want to disappoint Hoseok further than he already has because after all, he knows he is the weakest member of the dance line. He hears Hyunwoo joke about how Hyungwon should be replaced with Jooheon, and it gets to him. He doesn't even think he should be in the visual line, so he can't do anything to upset the older members further.

He opens the files one by one, arranging them in chronological order. In the middle of the eighth one, he hears something fall from the kitchen.

Hyungwon has never got up so fast.

To his relief, he finds Kihyun standing near the counter with broken glass next to him, but none actually touch him. Hyungwon quickly grabs a broom.

"Ki, what happened?"

"I was putting up the dishes and dropped Hyunwoo's favorite cup," he sighs.

_What would Minhyuk do?_

Hyungwon sweeps the glass into a pile away from Kihyun. "Why don't you go into the other room and do something else while I clean this up?"

For a second, Kihyun looks like he is about to argue, but he looks at the ground. "I'm sorry." He whispers. "I'm fine, really. I don't need help." Kihyun looks so small. His arms are close to his sides and his hands are balled into small fists.

Hyungwon holds the broom towards Kihyun. "If you need anything, I'm in the living room."

Kihyun takes the broom, a blush on his cheeks. "You can...stay if you want."

Hyungwon slowly sits down in a chair at the table. He watches as Kihyun finishes cleaning up the glass and discarding it in the trash.

"Hyungwon?" He says quietly. "I'm scared."

"What's going on?"

Kihyun keeps his back to Hyungwon. "What if everyone hates me when they learn I'm a little? I'm supposed to be the mom of the group. Will I have to leave the group?"

"Come here, Ki." He waits until Kihyun is shyly sitting in his lap, cheeks red. "You will not be leaving this group. Even if everyone doesn't like it, Starship won't kick you out as long as Monbebes don't know. Minhyuk and I will defend you no matter what, Kihyun."

_I wish I believed my words._

Kihyun wraps his arms around Hyungwon's neck, and his eyes start watering. "I don't want everyone to hate me!"

"They won't. I promise. Just give them time to accept it." He brushes a piece of Kihyun's hair behind his ear. "Now, do you want to take a break?"

It takes less than thirty seconds for Kihyun to fall. "Pway!"

_Pretend you're Minhyuk. You're not Hyungwon._

"Alright, let's go play in my room. Hoseok has some stuffed animals that Monbebes gave him. I'm sure he won't notice if you borrow them."

Kihyun grabs Hyungwon's hand. "Pway!"

"Okay, okay, but quietly because Minmin is sleeping."

And so, the little drags Hyungwon into the said man's room and sits down on Hoseok's bed. He immediately grabs the large stuffed bear that is as big as his torso and giggles loudly.

Hyungwon sits next to him. "Ki, what do you want to play?"

Kihyun mumbles some nonsense.

Two hours later, Hyungwon is exhausted and wants nothing more than to lie down and sleep. Little Kihyun is a handful.

"Let's go eat lunch, okay?"

Kihyun reluctantly agrees. They have sandwiches for lunch, and Hyungwon has to cut them up in small pieces and feed Kihyun. Luckily, it doesn't make a mess, so he really hopes he can just put Kihyun to bed.

After they eat, Kihyun doesn't fight him when he drags the main vocalist into Minhyuk's bedroom to take a nap.

"Paci."

Hyungwon reaches over and grabs Kihyun's pacifier from Minhyuk's bed and places it in between his lips. "Okay, you ready to lie down with Minmin?"

Kihyun sleepily stumbles to Minhyuk's bed and crawls over the sleeping male, who is lying on his back, to curl up on his side. Reflexively, Minhyuk wraps an arm around him when Kihyun rests his head against Minhyuk's chest.

Slowly, Hyungwon mirrors Kihyun's position, his forehead against said boy's. Sure enough, Minhyuk wraps his arm around Hyungwon too. It's a bit uncomfortable since the bed is too small, but its warm and Hyungwon doesn't want to leave.

_Can I just stay here forever?_

The sounds of both the main vocalist and Minhyuk's breathing end up luring him to sleep.

-

Minhyuk wakes up in a weird position. Both Hyungwon and Kihyun are lying on their sides with their heads on his chest. They are fast asleep with their fingers intertwined on Minhyuk's stomach.

He can't look at a clock, but he knows they have been out of it for a while. Plus, Kihyun is sucking on his pacifier, so he must have fallen into his little space.

"Hyungwon," Minhyuk attempts to shake him.

"Min?" Hyungwon mumbles, lifting his head to look at Minhyuk.

Hyungwon is  _adorable._ His eyes are barely open, and he pouts up at Minhyuk. He is wearing a big hoodie, and it makes him even cuter. Minhyuk's heart beats a bit too fast because maybe he likes both of them a lot.

"Hey, Wonnie," he accidentally uses his soft voice he uses for Kihyun. "You ready to get Ki up?"

Hyungwon doesn't react to the voice at all. He just shakes his head before settling back down. "I'm tired," he whines.

"Did Ki have a nice morning?"

"Yeah." Without warning, he stands up. "I'm gonna sleep in my own bed."

_Is he..._ _jealous_ _of_ _Ki..._

Regardless, he doesn't chase him because Kihyun needs all of his attention when he first wakes up.

-

At dinner time, Minhyuk finally decides to wake up Hyungwon since Kihyun isn't in his little space to annoy the hell out of him. He leaves Kihyun in the kitchen to finish making dinner, and he enters Hyungwon's room.

Surprisingly, Hyungwon is sitting in Hoseok's bed with the laptop in his lap, quietly editing videos. He glances up when Minhyuk walks in. "Hi."

"Kihyun is making dinner. He is almost done." Minhyuk sits on the bed. "Are you going to come eat?"

"I think I'll finish up editing and head to bed. I'm tired."

"He thinks that he upset you," Minhyuk says quietly. "Is it true?"

"No, I just want to be left alone, Minhyuk. I don't know if I can handle being a caretaker and then handling you," Hyungwon snaps.

" _Me?_  What about me?"

"Go away."

"Stop shutting me out. Hyungwon, I need you to speak."

Hyungwon's eyes shoot up to stare into Minhyuk's soul. "You and Kihyun love each other and I'm on the outside, so please go away."

Minhyuk blinks. "Hyungwon, what are you even talking about? I'm his caretaker."

"Have you ever thought about how I feel, huh? What if I don't want to baby him all the time? What if I don't want to stare at stuffed animals and pacifiers?" Hyungwon raises his voice.

"What are you even talking about? You were just-" he stops. "You're jealous of Kihyun."

"I'm not jealous of a twenty four year old that acts like a toddler. There's nothing to be jealous of, Minhyuk," Hyungwon says calmly.

Minhyuk is dumbfounded. Hyungwon was fine with Kihyun earlier, but now he hates Kihyun being a little. It doesn't really make sense.

"Then stop being an asshole! Come on Hyungwon, it makes him happy. No one said you have to be a caretaker!"

The words fly out of Hyungwon's mouth before he can stop them: "What am I supposed to do if I love you both!?"

The elder vocalist blinks in surprise. "You  _what_?"

"Get out of my room Minhyuk," Hyungwon suddenly says coldly. "Please just leave." He slips the laptop off of his lap and pushes Minhyuk onto the floor. "Get the fuck out."

Hyungwon isn't exactly threatening, but Minhyuk still scrambles to stand up. He leaves without a word.

_What the fuck, Hyungwon?_

The vocalist locks the door behind Minhyuk and runs a hand through his hair. He hates this. He is tired of hiding and pretending. If he speaks to Minhyuk again, he will come clean.

He isn't sure he will be spoken to anytime soon though.


	4. Chapter 4

"I wish you'd do something right for once!" Changkyun snaps at Hyungwon.

He has messed up four times in the past five minutes. His brain can't focus; all he can think about is how warm it would be to cuddle with Minhyuk. The said man is wearing a black t-shirt with a large white hoodie over it, and it would be really nice if he would let Hyungwon wear it. He wonders if it smells like him.

_Stop it. Stop it. Stop it._

He feels  _so_ stressed. It would be so nice to forget about it for at least an hour.

"Hyungwon, are you listening to me?" Hyunwoo interrupts his thoughts.

Truthfully, he is trying to focus, but now everyone is staring at him. Minhyuk and Kihyun are staring at him, but they still won't speak to him. They have been practicing for four hours now, and everyone is exhausted but Hyungwon just wants to stare at Minhyuk and Kihyun instead of resting or even returning to practice.

"What is wrong with you?" Hyunwoo asks in a stern voice; he sounds so angry.

Hyungwon breaks.

He whimpers before tears all of a sudden fall, and soon he is wailing. He whines, calling Minhyuk's name, and soon the blonde male is in front of him gently trying to soothe him.

"Hyungwon, hey, look at me," he speaks in a sweet voice.

The youngest visual attaches himself to Minhyuk, pressing his face against Minhyuk's neck and wrapping his arms around him. Minhyuk hugs the other visual and rubs his back, shushing him quietly.

Minhyuk is shocked to say the least; he thought Hyungwon hated littles. Yet, Hyungwon clearly cried "Minmin". Then, as he feared, he has Kihyun on his left, gently pulling on his arm. It's like a domino effect. He is a bit stressed out, since two is much harder to handle than one. Kihyun gets loud sometimes, but he doesn't cry too much; Minhyuk is worried about how jealous he is going to get.

He sees the other members' weird looks, but he still sits down with Hyungwon in his lap. "Hey, Ki, can you go grab my bag?" He asks when Hyungwon won't quiet down after a minute.

Kihyun, literally, crawls towards Minhyuk's bag and soon returns it. He smiles proudly. "Here!"

Minhyuk doesn't have any real shame anymore because Hyungwon won't stop screaming, so he doesn't bother to hide anything anymore. "Good boy, Kihyunnie. Can you get out the pink paci you don't like?"

Minhyuk rarely leave the house without a pacifier in his bag. He carries a back-up blue one and then the pink one that Kihyun hates; it's pink with a bear on it. He never knows when he will have to shut Kihyun up, so he decided it's better to be safe than sorry.

The main vocalist hands it to Minhyuk, and he leans Hyungwon back a bit to put the pacifier in his mouth. Magically, Hyungwon falls silent and rests his head on Minhyuk's shoulder.

"Does someone want to explain?" Hoseok asks.

Kihyun takes a toy car out of Minhyuk's bag and quietly runs it up and down the youngest visual's legs, ignoring Minhyuk's pleads to leave Hyungwon alone. Defeated, Minhyuk tells them everything. He doesn't spare a detail, including Hyungwon acting jealous but never speaking up.

When he is done, everyone looks at one another. Luckily, Hyungwon is fast asleep so he doesn't have to deal with the judgement. Kihyun moves on to roll the car up and down Minhyuk's back.

"So," Jooheon begins, "They act younger sometimes and want to be babied? I mean, as long as they don't slip, it's way better than being caught in a scandal. Let them do what they want."

Everyone seems to agree, so they set up boundaries. The littles won't touch anyone else's things, but they can keep their stuff places besides Minhyuk's room. Anyone is allowed to play with the littles as long as they are careful. Minhyuk reminds them that they can switch back at any moment, so they need to be prepared. If Minhyuk isn't home, Hoseok is in charge of them. Overall, everyone is okay with it.

They end practice earlier, so they all climb into the van to go home. Minhyuk sits in the back row with Kihyun on one side and a sleeping Hyungwon on his other. Kihyun is feeling bigger than he usually is in his little space, so he doesn't take a nap. Instead, he plays a game on Minhyuk's phone.

It's peaceful.

-

"Daddy," he hears a soft whimper next to him.

It's a name Kihyun uses rarely, only if he is really little, but the voice isn't Kihyun's. It brings a smile to his face. He opens his eyes to see Hyungwon lying down on his side next to him, trying to wake him up. Hyungwon looks adorable in his glasses and the big white sweater Minhyuk put him in last night. Unlike Kihyun, he prefers wearing pants because he gets cold, but the black sweatpants on him are Hyunwoo's.

"Hey, baby. What's my Wonnie up to?"

He didn't expect Hyungwon to still wake up in his little space. When they lied down to go to bed the night before, he purposefully put Hyungwon in his own bed so he could avoid the embarrassment. He wasn't counting on having to coax him out the way he has to with Kihyun.

He isn't hurting anyone though, and they have a day off. Minhyuk decides to just entertain him for a bit. Besides, if he needs help, he can ask the other members now. He needs to bond with little Hyungwon.

Hyungwon didn't trust him yesterday. Sure, he climbed all over Minhyuk, but he was always hesitant to do anything. He tenses up when Minhyuk initiates contact too.

Little Hyungwon is shy, Minhyuk decides. He doesn't easily trust people, and he thinks no one likes him. He was quiet yesterday too; he simply wanted to be put to bed after dinner, whereas Kihyun wanted to play. He had to quietly rock Hyungwon back and forth until he fell asleep, and then he could finally play with Kihyun. 

The little sits up and looks at Minhyuk with desperate eyes, but Minhyuk has no idea what he is silently begging for. His bottom lip trembles; Minhyuk has seen this enough times to know that shit is about to go down if he doesn't figure out what is wrong.

Minhyuk sits up, "Do you want to play with Kihyunnie's car?"

He shakes his head, and the corners of his eyes become wet.

_Fuck, fuck, fuck._

He sees that Changkyun, Jooheon, and Kihyun are still fast asleep in their own beds. He wants to panic because the clock reads 6:00 A.M. and they all need to rest. One thing he is thankful for is that he got a decent amount of sleep.

He is so happy that Changkyun was the first one to help with the littles. Last night, Changkyun had put Kihyun to bed by himself. Of course, that lasted only for a few minutes until Kihyun realized Minhyuk didn't kiss him goodnight. Regardless, he appreciates how accepting he is, especially since Changkyun has no romantic interest in either of them.

He hopes the rest of them will learn to adjust to the littles too, but part of him just wants to keep them to himself. He knows they can have other caretakers, but Minhyuk wants them to be his. It's selfish, he knows that.

"Wonnie, baby, what do you want?" Minhyuk reaches over to soothe Hyungwon's hair down, but he stops when the other flinches away. "Its okay to ask. I'll get you whatever you need."

"P-paci," he whines.

The problem is Minhyuk is 100% sure Hyungwon went to bed with his pacifier. Since he was sleeping in his own bed, it could be anywhere. Temporarily panicking, Minhyuk runs a hand through his own hair.

"Okay, well what if just for today, you use Kihyunnie's?"

Hyungwon shakes his head, and the first tear slides down his cheek. Minhyuk wants nothing more than to hold him.

"Okay, let's go look in your bed, hm?" Minhyuk stands up and extends his hand for Hyungwon to take.

He hesitantly grips onto Minhyuk's hand and follows Minhyuk into his own room. Hyunwoo is barely awake and sitting in an upright position on his bed with his feet on the floor. Hoseok, on the other hand, is passed out on his own bed, face buried into the pillow.

"Hey, something wrong?" Hyunwoo asks sleepily.

Minhyuk shakes his head, noting that Hyungwon is hiding behind him despite the fact he is taller. "Everyone is fast asleep. Hyungwon just misplaced his pacifier. Have you seen it?"

"No."

The younger vocalist sighs and releases Hyungwon's hand. 

It was a mistake.

Hyungwon lets out a loud sob, and he continues crying. Hoseok lifts up his head from the pillow and sits up with his legs spread apart, rubbing his eyes before yawning.

"Hyungwon, sweetie, can you come here?" Hoseok says with a raspy voice. 

Still crying, Hyungwon stands in between Hoseok's legs, nearly towering over him. Minhyuk is shocked because Hyungwon didn't come to him the first time he asked, but now Hyungwon is listening to Hoseok.

He is good with kids, Minhyuk remembers from the Monsta X Ray episode. 

Hoseok motions for Hyungwon to sit on the floor, and he obeys with his head rested on Hoseok's thigh. The elder gently brushes Hyungwon's bangs away from his face, and the cries die down a bit. "Why are you crying, Wonnie?"

Minhyuk is jealous; Hyungwon is supposed to be his. He isn't supposed to run away from Minhyuk and go into Hoseok's arms. Ignoring the situation, Minhyuk begins to look for Hyungwon's pacifier.

Hyungwon sniffles as a response and shakes his head again. When Hoseok reaches to touch him, Hyungwon darts to the other side of the room to sit against the wall and watch Minhyuk search. The leader flashes Hoseok a look of confusion, but he just receives a shrug.

After a few minutes, Minhyuk finds the pacifier in between the edge of the bed and the wall. He sighs in relief and climbs down to approach Hyungwon.

"Hey baby, I found it," he sits on the floor with the pacifier in his hand.

The little's eyes go from Minhyuk to the pacifier, deciding whether approaching Minhyuk would be worth it. Ultimately, he crawls closer and parts his lips.

"You're such a good boy, Wonnie," Minhyuk gives him the pacifier.

Hyungwon is suddenly completely calm. His eyes are clear of tears, and he stares cluelessly at Minhyuk. 

"Let's go get you some breakfast and then properly introduce you to Kihyunnie if he is up for it," he ruffles the boy's black hair.

Minhyuk leads him into the kitchen and pours cereal for Hyungwon. He spends five minutes silently feeding him before Hyungwon leaves the room without warning. Confused, Minhyuk follows him.

He sits on the couch, mindlessly reaching for one of Kihyun's cars that sits on the floor. He takes it and quietly runs it up and down the couch.

Maybe he should wait to introduce the littles.

Minhyuk sits next to him and takes another car and runs it next to Hyungwon, finally causing him to giggle.

"Baby, do you trust Daddy?" Minhyuk says softly.

They never addressed Minhyuk's new name, but Hyungwon has been crying it since he fell into his little space.

"Scary."

"I'm here to protect you, Wonnie. I'll keep you safe from everything bad."

"Even monsters?"

"I'll fight them all."

Once Hyungwon is convinced, he moves to sit in Minhyuk's lap with his back pressed against said man's chest. He doesn't say anything; he just plays with the small toy car .

He is absolutely adorable; Minhyuk doesn't want it to end. 

-

Hyungwon slips back on accident. One second he was quietly watching cartoons next to Minhyuk since Kihyun was still asleep, and now he is an adult again. Everything rushes back, and the guilt and embarrassment settle in. He wants to cry, but that would just make everything worse.

"Minhyuk, I'm- I'm so sorry," he quickly stands up and runs to his room.

Since Hoseok is at his studio and Hyunwoo is at the gym, he takes the chance to lock the door. He ignores Minhyuk's pleads from outside. 

He can't believe he slipped for so long. He  _knew_ he was a little. In his trainee days, he did have a caretaker, but he left Hyungwon for a female little. He knows how disgusting he is, and he hates how Minhyuk puts up with it. He is worthless; he is the worst little ever. He couldn't even keep his caretaker. 

When his caretaker left, vowed to never slip again, but he accidentally did and now he fucked.

His caretaker wasn't a trainee. He was a older man around thirty. Hyungwon had met him by accident when he checked a sex toy shop to see if they had adult pacifiers. Hyungwon wanted someone so bad, so he accepted his new caretaker.

He never treated Hyungwon badly, but he did abandon him a lot, for weeks on end. It made him scared that everyone would leave him. Little Hyungwon never actually forgot, despite not being little for nearly three years. He is still scared of everything and everyone.

He can't slip again because Minhyuk will leave too.

"Hyungwon, please, I just want to talk!" Minhyuk hits the door with his fist again. 

The door flies open. "I'm sorry, okay? I'll never be little again."

Minhyuk enters the room and sits on Hoseok's bed. "What? No, that's not why I'm angry, Hyungwon. You know one of our house rules is that we don't just run away from conflicts. We communicate, that's what makes us such a good group."

"I'm not running away. I'm just stopping something before it becomes a habit."

"You can be a little!"

Hyungwon shouts, "No because then you'll leave too!!"

Minhyuk grows quiet. "Oh baby, come here."

Obediently, Hyungwon sits next to Minhyuk. "You're just going to leave."

"I loved taking care of you, and I love taking care of Kihyun. I don't mind it, okay? So if it makes you happy, I think you shouldn't lock yourself up."

"I like you, okay? And I just don't want to lose you as a friend. A-and I like Kihyun too. I just don't know what to do!" Hyungwon pulls at his own hair.

"Baby," Minhyuk places a hand on his knee. "Calm down, I'm not going anywhere. And for the record, I like you and Kihyun too, but first I need you to calm down for me, okay? I'm not going to leave."

It takes a total of three seconds for Hyungwon to crawl in his lap. "Daddy, Wonnie scared."

"Daddy knows you are, but it'll be okay. Kihyunnie won't hate you."

"Wuv Kihyunnie."

Minhyuk rubs the little's back. "I know baby, me too."

-

"So, Hyungwon is a little too?" Kihyun asks, genuinely curious.

Minhyuk nods, noting how Hyungwon grips his hand tighter. The three are sitting in Minhyuk's bed since all the other members are watching a movie in the living room. "Yeah, but there's more."

"O-okay."

"We both like you and each other."

Kihyun stares in disbelief. "You want us all three to date...?"

"Yeah but-"

"Yes." Kihyun quickly pecks both their lips. "Yes."

-

"Daddy," Kihyun tugs on Minhyuk's pants. "Daddy, Wonnie won't pway."

Minhyuk glances up from his phone, staring down at the littles who sit on the floor. Sure enough, there's Hyungwon with teary eyes, tightly gripping onto Kihyun's stuffed rabbit since he doesn't have any stuffed animals of his own. Kihyun is staring up with big, sad eyes.

"Sweetie, Wonnie is shy. It's his first time playing with you, so if he doesn't want to play, don't make him."

"Bunny!"

"I know he has your bunny, but he doesn't have any toys of his own," Minhyuk pulls out a pink pacifier from his pocket and offers it to Hyungwon.

The little leans forward and accepts it in between his lips. Then, he quietly moves to sit in between Minhyuk's legs on the floor. Since Minhyuk is on the couch, he burries his face into Minhyuk's knee.

The eldest soothes his hair down. "Kihyunnie isn't going to hurt you, baby."

Regardless, the little crawls into Minhyuk's lap. "Wanna cuddle."

That's how Minhyuk ends up with Hyungwon's back pressed up against his chest and his arm around the little's waist. Kihyun is curled up against Minhyuk's back, so it's a tight fit since they are in Minhyuk's bed.

"Daddy?"

Minhyuk hums, grip tightening on Hyungwon.

"Wuvs you and Kihyunnie."

Minhyuk chuckles. "We love you too, baby. So much."


	5. Chapter 5

Minhyuk quietly pours apple juice into a green sippy cup and then a pink one. It's a bit funny how Hyungwon won't use anything unless it's pink or yellow. It's really cute though, but sometimes it's a pain.

"Hey babies," Minhyuk walks into the living room to greet the sleepy littles.

They just woke up a few minutes ago, so Hoseok took over while Minhyuk got their cups. Hyungwon is sitting in Hoseok's lap facing him with his face burried in the elder's neck. Kihyun is next to them, his head rested on Hoseok's shoulder and quietly playing with Hyungwon's fingers. Luckily, they both have their pacifiers, so they are quiet.

Unsurprisingly, Kihyun has already ditched his pants, leaving him in a black sweater. Hyungwon is still wearing Minhyuk's sweatpants and Kihyun's red hoodie.

Unlike normal, Minhyuk isn't greeted. In fact, neither boy even acknowledges him.

"Hoseok, what did you do?"

"Nothing. They are just stressed about the comeback and they worked really hard at practice, so I guess they are just sleepy. It should be an easy day then," Hoseok tells him as he rubs Hyungwon's back.

It makes sense, really, because they haven't been little all week. Minhyuk hasn't even seen them look at a toy or give him a desperate look, so he hasn't even considered them slipping. It was a bit surprising to wake up to Kihyun whining that Hyungwon wouldn't wake up.

(Hyungwon had finally gotten up when Minhyuk coaxed him out of bed by promising to watch cartoons. He ditched Minhyuk and cartoons when he found Hoseok sitting on the couch. Minhyuk has to ignore the jealousy.)

Minhyuk sits down next to Kihyun. "Hey baby boy, you want juice?"

Kihyun sleepily nods, so Minhyuk hands him the green cup. The little drops his pacifier and quietly sips on his apple juice.

"Wonnie, you ready to come to Daddy?"

Hyungwon untangles himself from Hoseok and climbs over Kihyun to sit in Minhyuk's lap. He shakes his head when Minhyuk offers him juice. Instead, he rests his head on Minhyuk's shoulder. Whining softly, he reaches for one of Kihyun's hands to hold.

The youngest mumbles incoherent words, so Hoseok speaks. "I'll ask Hyunwoo to cancel practice today. They just seem so worn out. I'm worried about them, Min."

Minhyuk is worried too, really. Hyungwon is tightly gripping Kihyun's hand like a lifeline, and Kihyun is quietly hushing him in between sips of juice.

"Are you a big boy, Kihyunnie?"

Kihyun hums, resting his head on Minhyuk and squeezing Hyungwon's hand. "Help Won."

"Yeah baby, you can help. See if you can get Wonnie to drink something." He isn't sure if Kihyun can  _actually_ help, but it's worth a shot. Besides, they both are worried about Hyungwon.

Little Kihyun is...well little. His brain is too deep into his headspace, so he does exactly what a toddler would do: he pulls on Hyungwon's fluffy hair.

It gets a soft whimper out of him, and he eyes the cup in Minhyuk's hand suspiciously. He likes the color pink the best, so he really wants to ask for it. On the other hand, Hyungwon wants Kihyun's cup since he used it.

He makes his decision, reaching over to take Kihyun's cup, letting his pacifier fall. Hyungwon quietly brings the cup up to his lips.

Kihyun smiles. "Kihyunnie good!"

Minhyuk nods. "Thank you, baby. Hey, Hoseok, do you mind making breakfast since Ki isn't up for it?"

Hoseok yawns, but he gets up anyways. Without warning, Hyungwon drops the cup and crawls in Kihyun's lap, surprising both Minhyuk and the said little. Hyungwon presses his face in the crook of Kihyun's neck, mumbling something about "Kihyunnie and Daddy".

Kihyun is naturally protective over the younger, so he wraps his arms around the taller boy. "Daddy says Kihyunnie strong, so Kihyunnie is gonna protect Wonnie!"

Apparently Kihyun is now calling Minhyuk "Daddy" because Hyungwon does.

Minhyuk has mixed feelings about it.

Hyungwon simply presses further against Kihyun and yawns. Minhyuk simply watches, amazed at how relaxed they both seem.

It's so cute, his heart melts.

"You wanna be a big boy and help Daddy take care of Wonnie today?" Minhyuk asks, gently combing his fingers through Kihyun's hair.

"Yeah! Kihyunnie a big boy!"

"Let's get you some breakfast first,  _big boy_."

Kihyun distracts himself by baby talking to the other little, lulling him to sleep on accident. On impulse, Hyungwon starts sucking on his thumb.

With a sigh, Minhyuk shoves the abandoned pacifier in his mouth.

They sit mostly in silence, until Hoseok comes in balancing four plates. He places them all on the table in front of the couch. "You're welcome, by the way. I really hope our little Hyungwonnie is up to eat. He didn't eat dinner last night."

Minhyuk didn't know that. He just remembers after practice Hyungwon insisted on sleeping alone. Kihyun was incredibly disappointed about it.

"Wonnie," Kihyun groans, pulling at the other's hair. "Wonnie, Kihyunnie's hungry."

Hyungwon whimpers, clearly distressed, before he shakes his head.

"Hyungwon, sweetie," Minhyuk speaks as gently as he can. "Come on, let's eat."

Kihyun cluelessly slides Hyungwon off of him, sitting Hyungwon in between Minhyuk and himself. He reaches for his plate and takes a large bite.

Minhyuk sighs, staring at Hyungwon who looks at Kihyun longingly. He wants Kihyun's attention so bad; Minhyuk feels a bit bad.

"Kihyunnie, Hyungwonnie wants you to feed him," Hoseok says as he sits in the chair with his own plate.

Kihyun looks at Hoseok before looking between his plate and Hyungwon. Slowly, he takes Hyungwon's pacifier out of his mouth. When the boy doesn't scream, he starts feeding Hyungwon. Minhyuk smiles fondly.

They sit like that, mostly in silence besides Hyungwon's childish babbling; he's too little to actually make sense. Kihyun feeds him in between eating bites himself. It's nice and peaceful.

Minhyuk files this as important in the back of his mind.

When they finish, Hyungwon is sleepily struggling to keep his eyes open and releasing the softest whines Minhyuk has heard him make. He reminds himself that Hyungwon is feeling extra little, so he speaks up.

"You ready to take a nap, sweetie?"

Hoseok laughs softly. "He's so tired, Min. Let me handle Ki. Go get that poor thing to bed. Hyungwon hasn't been sleeping well lately. In fact, in the past week I have woken up with him in my bed twice, completely out of his little space. Isn't he your boyfriend? What's going on?"

It doesn't surprise Minhyuk considering two days ago he found Hyungwon crying against Kihyun's neck. The visual has been stressing himself out way too much. Last week, he found the pair in the bathroom. Hyungwon was on the sink, crying, and Kihyun was in between his legs, wiping his tears. Minhyuk had scolded them both for not finding him first.

Minhyuk shakes his head and stands up. "Ki, I'm gonna put Hyungwon to bed. Do you want to play with Hoseok?" He walks over to Hyungwon and lifts him up.

Of course, Hyungwon  _is_ heavy, but Minhyuk is used to pretending that they are light like babies.

(The first time Kihyun was little and asked Minhyuk to carry him, Minhyuk had said no. Kihyun immediately started crying. He learned never to say no again.)

Kihyun seems momentarily jealous until Hoseok picks up the stuffed bear Kihyun abandoned. Without warning, Kihyun climbs on Hoseok's lap and takes the bear.

He doesn't notice Minhyuk walking away. Instead, he smiles up at Hoseok.

"Bunny," he pokes Hoseok's chest.

"Kihyunnie, if I'm a bunny, then you're a hamster."

Kihyun giggles, loudly and excitedly. "Hamster!"

Hoseok gently soothes the boy's hair down, humming softly. "Yeah, Kihyunnie is silly, huh? Does Minhyuk normally have this much fun playing with you?"

He gets ignored. Kihyun happily hugs the bear close to his chest and jumps off Hoseok's lap. "Chase!"

The little runs around in circles, and with a large smile on his face, Hoseok stands up and slowly walks closer to him.

With wide eyes, Kihyun quickly darts into the hallway, running into Hoseok's bedroom. Hoseok raises his eyebrows and follows.

He finds Kihyun sitting on Hyunwoo's chest, and the said man looking half asleep and very confused. Kihyun looks extra cute like this, cluelessly pulling on his sweater sleeves to cover his hands before resting his head on Hyunwoo's chest, still on top of the leader.

"Kihyunnie, baby," Hoseok walks over.

"Oh," is all Hyunwoo says.

Hoseok smiles. "Sorry, I didn't know he would run in here. Hyungwon and Minhyuk are sleeping."

"I don't mind it," Hyunwoo says slowly. "I just didn't expect to wake up to Kihyun jumping on me. He may act like he is little, but he still weighs the same."

"Woo," Kihyun says softly.

Hoseok coos, "Seriously, Hyunwoo, you can't tell me he doesn't look adorable like this. I mean, look at him."

"How about we play something quietly, something with less jumping?" Hyunwoo suggests, sitting up.

Kihyun quickly jumps up and runs into the living room, leaving Hyunwoo and Hoseok to slowly follow.

"Okay, next time Minhyuk gets paid, he better get this poor baby some toys," Hyunwoo says, surprising Hoseok. "If he won't, I will. He just looks so bored."

Hoseok glances up at Hyunwoo. "You like little Ki, huh? Me too. You have to see Hyungwon too. He's so cute, Hyunwoo. They both are."

Hyunwoo sits on the couch, releasing a groan when Kihyun jumps on him. "Okay, Ki, let's settle down. Why don't we watch some TV?"

The leader reaches for the remote and turns it on some random cartoon. It's interesting enough to have Kihyun sliding off Hyunwoo's lap to watch it. Of course, to Hoseok and Hyunwoo it's incredibly boring, but they keep their eyes focused on the little anyways.

"Poor baby," Hyunwoo gently mumbles. "He doesn't really have any little kid stuff." He pauses. "Kihyun hasn't been little around us since the day after Hyungwon slipped. Neither of them have. I hope they open up to us. And I guess practice should be cancelled."

"Everyone is overworking themselves anyways," Hoseok sighs.

It's not far from the truth. Jooheon and Changkyun stay out late working on new tracks, never coming home until the middle of the night. Hoseok spends time in his own studio a bit too much. Hyunwoo is always worrying over the other members. And Minhyuk, Kihyun, and Hyungwon stay at the studio late to work on cleaning choreography.

Starship doesn't even pay attention to their efforts.

"We need a break," Hyunwoo agrees.

He keeps his eyes on the little, watching the way he giggles at the TV.

He hopes the littles will understand that the other members are always willing to help.

-

Minhyuk walks into the living room to find an odd scene: Hoseok and Hyunwoo cuddling under a blanket on the couch with Kihyun's head in Hyunwoo's lap. Kihyun is fast asleep, his lips parted and eyes sealed closed.

Hyungwon stands next to Minhyuk, but at the sight, he quickly rushes over to the small bear on the ground. He plops down, hugging the bear and focusing on the TV.

Minhyuk walks closer. "You got Kihyun to sleep? He's so hard to get calmed down these days. Thank you for the help."

Hyunwoo watches Hyungwon try to rub the sleep away from his eyes. The boy is still sucking on his pink pacifier as he tries to wake himself up.

"No problem," Hoseok grins. "I don't know how you do it."

"Some days I don't either," Minhyuk laughs softly.

As if on cue, Kihyun lifts his head. "Daddy?"

The visual slowly sits on the couch. "Yeah baby, Daddy's right here. You've been such a good boy today."

Kihyun flashes a bright smile at the praise. "Pwayed with Woo and Bunny!"

"I bet that was tons of fun," Minhyuk cards his fingers through Kihyun's hair.

Kihyun nods. "Wuves you."

"Go tell that to Hyungwon."

Obidently, Kihyun jumps off the couch to sit next to Hyungwon. "Wuves you."

With big eyes, Hyungwon stares at him before grinning.

Minhyuk dies a little inside.


	6. Chapter 6

Kihyun yawns, resting his head on Minhyuk's chest. They are in a weird position. Minhyuk is lying on his back, and Kihyun is lying on his side with his head on Minhyuk's chest. Oddly, Hyungwon has his head rested on Kihyun's hip with his legs curled up close.

It's the weirdest thing Kihyun has woken up to so far.

He should get up. They have a fanmeet in a few hours and he needs to make breakfast, but he'd hate to disturb Hyungwon. So, he runs his fingers through Hyungwon's hair, and he decides he won't get up yet.

Hyungwon groans, pressing his head further against Kihyun's hand. Apparently it's enough to wake up Minhyuk.

"Ki?"

"Sorry," Kihyun quickly apologizes. "Hyungwon is just acting weird again."

Minhyuk blinks. "That's how he sleeps when he is upset. He tries to curl up in weird places. What did you do to him?"

Kihyun whines, tilting his head to press his lips against Minhyuk's. "Nothing. Why is it always me who upsets him?"

"You nag too much, and then he feels bad."

Kihyun can't argue with him, so he shakes Hyungwon awake. "Baby, come on. If you get up, I'm sure Minhyuk will kiss you as many times as you want."

Sure enough, Hyungwon lifts his head, an evident pout on his lips.

"Awe, come here," Kihyun coos.

Hyungwon squirms his way in between the pair, facing Kihyun. "I'm so tired," he groans.

Kihyun presses his lips against Hyungwon's, letting the sleepy male control the pace. Of course, Hyungwon moves his mouth so slowly.

Kihyun pulls away. "You're so slow and lazy in the mornings." He pecks Hyungwon's lips again. "Go get kisses from Min."

Hyungwon rolls over and kisses Minhyuk. "I love you two so much," he slurs.

Climbing over them, Kihyun smiles. "We love you too, more than you know."

He turns back to see Minhyuk gently kissing Hyungwon, fingers in the younger's hair but treating him like glass.

"Hyungwon, what was upsetting you?"

Minhyuk pulls away. "Yeah."

The youngest sits up and stares at his lap. "Um, sometimes I feel like I'm on the outside of you guys' relationship."

"Oh, Hyungwon, that's not true and you know it. You know we love you, unconditionally and just as much as we love each other," Kihyun tells him.

"I just...I feel like I'm not good enough," Hyungwon blinks away tears.

Kihyun stares, confused. Hyungwon, his beautiful and talented baby boy, thinks he is not good enough.

Sure, Kihyun is a little, but Hyungwon is his and Minhyuk's baby boy. Big Kihyun doesn't want to be babied like little Kihyun. Sure, Minhyuk does it anyways, but Hyungwon is the baby and always will be.

"Everyone is always praising everyone but me. The group as a whole, and then you guys just seems so happy together that I-"

"Baby," Minhyuk sits up to cup Hyungwon's face. "You're ours, okay? You're our perfect and talented boyfriend, whom we love more than anything else. We love you, and we also love each other. You're so amazing, Hyungwon. Don't think of yourself anything less."

Hyungwon blushes. "S-stop."

Kihyun extends his hand. "Come on, let's go cook breakfast. You can even sit on the counter and steal food."

Hesitantly, Hyungwon takes Kihyun's hand. Glancing back at Minhyuk, he frowns. "Min, you're coming too, right?"

Minhyuk hums. "Yeah, right behind you."

Their relationship is a bit rocky, but they spend the morning quietly cooking. Hyungwon sits on the counter, letting Minhyuk and Kihyun praise him and occationally feed him. Minhyuk stands behind Kihyun as he cooks, hands on the younger's hips.

They fit together strangely and things don't always work out, but they love each other.

And that's enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi thanks for reading! What do you guys want to see more of?  
> Leave suggestions in the comments, thanks!


	7. Chapter 7

He is beating himself up again. Minhyuk so clearly sees it in the way he tenses up as little Kihyun runs passed him and jumps into Hyunwoo's lap. Hyungwon quietly continues to read his book, but Minhyuk knows what is going through his mind.

He wants to reach out, wants to tell him that he is safe, but it's not his place.

"Daddy!" Kihyun calls, raising up his arms, ready to be carried.

Minhyuk tiredly collapses next to Hyunwoo and lets Kihyun crawl into his lap. "Can't we play something a bit less exciting?" Minhyuk asks. He is exhausted from playing tag for an hour and a half.

Kihyun seems momentarily hurt before recovering and going to rest his head on Minhyuk's chest. Minhyuk rubs his back, but his eyes never leave Hyungwon.

"Hey," Jooheon taps on Hyungwon's shoulder. "You wanna come to the studio?"

It's a rare occurrence for Hyungwon to leave after 9:00, but Hyungwon sets his book down and stands up. "Yeah."

He quietly slips on his shoes and follows Jooheon out the door.

The wind is harsh against his bare arms, but he doesn't bother going back in. The moonlight lights up the sidewalk a bit, but most of the light is coming from the yellowish orange street lights. The roads are empty, but further into the city, everything is wide awake.

Jooheon takes off his jacket and puts in around Hyungwon's shoulder. "You look like you needed to get the hell out of there."

Hyungwon smiles softly. "Thank you for everything, really."

They fall into a comfortable silence, the only thing filling it is the rushing cars further in the city. The walk to Jooheon's studio is quiet, but once the door is closed Jooheon speaks up.

"Hyungwon, what the hell happened between you three?"

Hyungwon sits on the couch, avoiding eye contact. "Nothing. I'm just tired, Jooheon. I'm so, so tired."

"Why are you tired?" Jooheon sits next to him.

The taller feels safe like this. He feels safe away from Minhyuk and Kihyun and all the bad things in the world. He feels safe in his own tiny world with Jooheon.

So safe and warm he could almost slip.

"Dancing and singing and lessons and everything," he says quietly. "I'm so tired. Like I'm underwater and everything is moving but me."

"When was the last time you let yourself be little?"

Hyungwon tenses up. "Not long ago," he lies. "I'm just tired, Jooheon. The company keeps shooting me down about my new choreography that I want to post. It's not good enough. It never is."

Jooheon accepts the lie. "You are good enough, Hyungwon. Minhyuk and Kihyun love you so, so much, so please tell me what's on your mind."

He breaks.

"I'm a burden. Minhyuk looks so tired when both I and Kihyun are little. I ask for all of his attention, and Kihyun wants to play too. I just want him to take care of himself and-"

Jooheon leans over and wipes a tear away from his eye. "Minhyuk loves you. Loves you when you're big and little. Loves you when you're happy, sad, or angry. He loves you for you, and maybe it's tiring to deal with two, but that doesn't make him hate you. He just needs a little help."

Hyungwon sniffles softly. "I'm sorry."

"Oh no," Jooheon drops his voice that uses when speaking to the littles. "No, sweetie, nothing is your fault. You can come to me or anyone else when you're feeling little if you don't want to go to Minhyuk."

It works too. It's like magic, Hyungwon is shyly pulling Jooheon's jacket tighter around himself and biting his lip. Jooheon knows he has dropped.

"Hi, sweetie, you wanna play on the keyboard?" Jooheon asks sweetly.

Hesitantly, Hyungwon nods. Jooheon carefully leads him over to the chair and sits down, pulling the little into his lap. He turns towards the keyboard and turns it on.

Hyungwon glances up at him with worried eyes.

"Oh, baby, it's okay. You can touch it," he reaches out and hits the C key as demonstration.

Slowly Hyungwon reaches out and presses a few keys. A smile appears on his face.

They stay like that for nearly thirty minutes. Hyungwon presses buttons and keys while Jooheon simply encourages him. Eventually, he gets bored.

"Wanna pway."

Jooheon glances around at his studio. There isn't anything for him to play with. "Okay, well why don't we go home and play with your toys, hm?"

He stands up and sets Hyungwon down. "Can you be a big boy for just a bit? All we have to do is walk home, okay? Then you can do whatever you want."

"Hand?"

"No, but I'll be right next to you, okay?"

Jooheon carefully leads him out, and immediately Hyungwon whimpers.

"Dark."

"I know," Jooheon whispers. "Come on, let's get home."

Hyungwon quietly walks next to Jooheon, eyes scanning everything. Jooheon thinks its cute how everything interests him.

They arrive at the dorm in no time, and Jooheon opens the door and pushes Hyungwon inside.

"You've been such a good boy, Hyungwonnie!"

Hyungwon smiles shyly. "Pway," he reaches for Jooheon's hand.

He lets the little drag him into the living room, in front of Kihyun's blocks. The said male is no where in sight; the only other person in the living room is Hoseok.

"Sit," Hyungwon tells him.

With a soft chuckle, Jooheon sits on the ground with his legs spread apart, and Hyungwon happily sits in between them. He reaches for the blocks and starts to stack them.

"Y-you got Hyungwon to be little?" Hoseok blinks in surprise.

Jooheon hums. "Yeah, weirdly enough. He dropped when I used my caregiver voice, but I've never actually been alone with one of them. Isn't he so cute though?"

"When Kihyun slipped back, Min couldn't get him to stop crying. He thinks Hyungwon hates him."

The younger wraps his arms around Hyungwon. "Why would Hyungwon hate him?"

"I don't know. He cried until he fell asleep, which was only a few minutes before you showed up. Who knows what Minhyuk is up to now."

Jooheon looks around, making sure they are alone. "He thinks he is a burden to Minhyuk. You know how comfortable Kihyun is and how often he drops. Hyungwon sees how tired Minhyuk gets when he drops too, so he decided to never do it again."

Hoseok immediately walks over and sits down next to Hyungwon. He runs his fingers through Hyungwon's hair. "Baby, I think it's time we have a talk."

The little glances over. "Seok."

"Daddy loves you so much, but sometimes you need to come to us too. We love you too, baby."

Hyungwon looks confused before he turns back to the blocks. "Block."

Hoseok sighs in defeat, but he watches as Hyungwon stacks all the red blocks up, only to push them down moments later.

The eldest kisses the little's forehead. "I'm gonna head to bed, Jooheon. I'll send Minhyuk your way." He stands up and leaves Hyungwon and Jooheon alone.

"Alright, why don't we settle down and watch some cartoons, hm?" Jooheon suggests.

Gently, he picks Hyungwon up and places him on the couch before sitting beside him. After turning on cartoons, he glances up to see Minhyuk awkwardly standing there.

His face is also stained with tears. He's wearing Hyungwon's black hoodie and sweatpants. He looks beyond exhausted, his eyes struggle to stay open.

Jooheon feels bad for him.

"Hyungwon, baby," he sits next to the little. "Daddy loves you so, so much."

Jooheon watches as Hyungwon glances over before pressing himself against Minhyuk. Relieved, Minhyuk wraps his arm around his shoulders.

"I could say I'm sorry a million times but I'm not sure if he will ever be comfortable dropping." Minhyuk pulls out the pacifier from his pocket and slips it in between Hyungwon's lips.

Immrdiately, he starts sucking and becomes like jello against Minhyuk.

"I think you have a lot of talking to do in the morning," Jooheon tells him. "Get this poor baby to bed. I'm sure he is exhausted."

Minhyuk smiles. "Yeah."

It's uncomfortable, but Minhyuk picks Hyungwon up and manages to put him in bed and squish next to him with Kihyun on the other side. Hyungwon sleepily cuddles up to Minhyuk, and Kihyun wraps his arms around Hyungwon.

-

Kihyun wakes up feeling fine. He isn't even tempted when he sees Hyungwon sucking on his pacifier. He attempts to untangle himself, but it only wakes up the little.

He is met with a soft whine, which means Hyungwon is somewhere in between dropping completely and staying big. Easily, Kihyun pulls the pacifier from his mouth and climbs out of bed. He sets the pacifier on the nightstand before glancing back at his boyfriends.

Hyungwon is sleepily sitting up and rubbing his eyes. "Kihyun?"

"Yeah baby, I'm sorry you were upset yesterday. Lets talk when Min gets up, okay? You wanna come start breakfast with me?"

Hyungwon hesitantly nods before getting out of bed and following Kihyun into the kitchen. In the kitchen, Hyungwon looks like some sort of god. The sunlight makes his skin a soft color. His hair sits messily atop his head and his lips are barely parted. He is still wearing jeans and a t-shirt from yesterday.

Kihyun cups his face and kisses him softly. "You're so beautiful, Hyungwon."

Hyungwon leans in for another kiss and whines when Kihyun walks away. Pouting, he sits at the table.

"You shouldn't ask me to come if you aren't going to offer me attention."

Kihyun laughs. "Okay, sometimes I forgot how clingy you are in the mornings. Usually Minhyuk is the one to wake you up." He grabs a pan.

Hyungwon frowns. "I'm going back to bed."

He makes sure to steal another kiss before he leaves.

-

After breakfast, Minhyuk drags the two into the bedroom and kicks Jooheon and Changkyun out.

"Okay we are going to talk about what is going on."

Hyungwon goes first. He tells them about his resistance to drop, how upset he had been.

"Oh baby," Minhyuk kisses him. "Baby, no, I'm not tired of you. I just need a bit of help from the members sometimes. I love you so much, don't tell Kihyun, but you're my favorite."

Kihyun hits his arm. "Excuse me?"

"I'm kidding, babe," Minhyuk leans over to kiss Kihyun.

"So, you'll come to me or anyone else when you feel little?" Minhyuk asks.

"Yeah."

"That's my baby boy."

Kihyun hits his arm again before kissing both of them. "Now that we have the gross feelings out, can we just make out for a bit?"

All three of them laugh.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What would you like to see? Comment ideas!!  
> Next chapter is a sick fic


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter isn't great just because ive been feeling down lately, but writing helps bc this fic is cute

There's something wrong. Something is terribly wrong. Minhyuk has no idea what it is, but he wakes up first, maybe that should have been a clue.

A head is lying on his chest, and another is under the blanket, pushing against his stomach. There's a leg between his own legs (probably Kihyun). One arm of Minhyuk's arms is tightly wrapped around the person lying on his chest, and the other person is gripping his hand.

Something is wrong.

Minhyuk slowly releases the hand and peels the blanket off of him, glancing down to confirm his suspicions. Sure enough, Hyungwon is resting his head on Minhyuk's stomach, and Kihyun is halfway lying on Minhyuk. Normally, Minhyuk wouldn't be surprised, but the males fell asleep out of their little spaces and this isn't how they normally sleep.

They prefers to sleep with Hyungwon in the middle, Minhyuk lying on his side, and Kihyun lying on his back. Hyungwon usually rests his head on Kihyun's chest and throws his leg over Kihyun's. Minhyuk doesn't mind at all. He knows they both love him, Hyungwon just prefers to sleep in the middle and Kihyun likes to sleep on his back.

Besides, when they fall asleep in the van, Minhyuk sits in the middle. They both rest their heads on his shoulders and hug his arm. It's cute.

In conclusion, something is just  _wrong._

Maybe they just woke up and felt little, he isn't sure.

He feels Hyungwon move closer to his legs.

"Daddy," he hears so softly.

"Yeah, baby?"

"Kihyunnie sick."

Minhyuk blinks. "No he's not, baby. He's just fine."

Hyungwon shakes his head. "Sick."

_For once, I wish my littles weren't so little._

"What do you mean? He was just sick two months ago."

"Again."

"Sweetie, can you go get Woo and Seok for me?" He asks.

The little presses his face further into Minhyuk stomach. "Daddy," he whines.

"Don't you want to help Kihyunnie?"

"Want Daddy." He rubs his eyes. He whimpers softly. "Sick too."

Minhyuk isn't sure he believes him. Sure, Hyungwon isn't known to lie, but he will go to extremes for attention. With a sigh, Minhyuk reaches down to comb his fingers through Hyungwon's hair in an effort to comfort him.

Pushing his bangs up, he feels Hyungwon's forehead.

The little isn't lying; his forehead is  _burning._

He should probably call a doctor, but the last thing he needs is a doctor learning that there is two littles in their group.

"Baby, what's wrong?"

"Daddy."

Minhyuk sighs and pets Hyungwon's hair. "Daddy is right here baby boy."

He glances at the bunk next to him where Jooheon is fast asleep. He needs help so badly, but he can't exactly get up. Kihyun is breathing unevenly and Hyungwon won't let him go.

"Paci."

_Oh fuck._

Minhyuk remembers that Hyungwon's only pacifier is at the company building. Last time he felt little during practice, Minhyuk had given up all hope and let him suck on the pacifier. It calmed him down enough to go through practice. Before they left, Minhyuk had taken it out of his mouth and accidently set it on a bench. He didn't want anyone in the company to see it though.

He temporarily panics.

"Baby, it's at the company," Minhyuk tries to explain.

He  _wails._ Minhyuk has never seen him cry so hard and so loud. On the bright side, its enough to wake up Jooheon, but it also wakes up Kihyun.

Kihyun lifts his head slightly, only to whimper and rest his head back on Minhyuk's chest. "Hyungwonnie," he barely kicks the other. "Stop."

This only makes it worse, and Minhyuk wants to cry to because  _wow_   _Hyungwon can scream._

Jooheon drags himself out of his bed and sits on Minhyuk's bed. "Hyungwon, come here, sweetie."

The little sits up and crawls over to Jooheon. Gently, Jooheon brushes the male's bangs away from his forehead, and Hyungwon quiets down to sniffling. Pushing Minhyuk's feet to the side, Jooheon adjusts himself to push his back against the wall to give Hyungwon enough room to crawl in his lap and rest his head against Jooheon's shoulder. His legs curl up behind Jooheon, trapping him.

"They like physical contact," Jooheon tells Minhyuk. "I remember that from a class I took in high school about babies."

"Wasn't he already lying on me?"

"Yeah, but babies when they are really little need to lie on their mom's chest, so I just took the same principle and applied it to them," Jooheon rubs Hyungwon's back. "I figured it would probably ease his crying. It's probably why Ki isn't crying, so would you like to explain why I'm awake at 7 A.M. with Hyungwon attached to me?"

Minhyuk sighs. "Well, Hyungwon said Kihyun is sick, and then he said he is sick. He asked for his pacifier but-"

"It's in my bag. I saw it just sitting there once you and Hyunwoo left, and Changkyun suggested I grab it."

Minhyuk is beyond relieved. Hyungwon doesn't easily accept using other pacifiers unless Kihyun is using them right then. If they weren't actually dating, Minhyuk would think its gross, but they have had their tongues nearly down each other's throats while Minhyuk watched. It's just a bit funny Hyungwon only will use something that isn't his if Kihyun uses it first.

Hyungwon doesn't have a lot of little stuff. He has a cup and a pacifier, and that is all. Minhyuk reminds himself to buy more pacifiers for him to avoid these issues.

"Daddy," Kihyun whines softly. "Daddy, Kihyunnie feel bad."

"Daddy knows, baby. Why don't we go and get you and Hyungwonnie wet washcloths, hm?"

Jooheon gently hits Minhyuk's foot. "Call Hoseok to do it."

Mjnhyuk reaches for his phone and calls Hoseok. Over the phone, he explains that the littles are sick, and within seconds Hoseok is in the room.

"Aw, babies," Hoseok sighs. "I'll go get washcloths. What can Hyunwoo do?"

"Get them apple juice in their cups. They need liquids and it's the easiest way to get them to drink anything. Make sure you grab the yellow one for Hyungwon."

Hoseok salutes and rushes out, leaving the room quiet aside from uneven breaths and sniffles.

"They seemed fine yesterday," Jooheon says, confused.

Minhyuk remembers yesterday clearly. He shouldn't have pushed them. During practice, Hyungwon mentioned not feeling well, but Minhyuk assumed he was just feeling little. Kihyun at the concert was quieter than normal.

Minhyuk should have taken better care of them.

"They weren't." Minhyuk sits up, pulling Kihyun in his lap. He gets small whines from the little until he settles down the same way Hyungwon did.

Hoseok returns with Hyunwoo behind him carrying two baby cups. Hoseok first hands both Minhyuk and Jooheon a washcloth. Carefully, Minhyuk lifts up Kihyun's bangs and presses the wet cloth against his forehead before guiding his head to rest on Minhyuk's shoulder to keep the cloth in place, and Jooheon does the same for Hyungwon.

"Thank you guys, so much," Minhyuk sighs in relief as he takes the baby cups from Hyunwoo and sets them on the bed next to him.

Hoseok sits on Jooheon's bed. "No problem. Anything else we can do?"

"Get cold medicine for little kids? Ki won't take pills and I doubt Hyungwon will either. I really appreciate it, and -" he pauses. "Guys, where is Changkyun?"

Jooheon slams his head against the wall. " _Fuck._ He didn't come home from the studio last night."

Everyone sighs.

"Jooheon has been spending more time with the littles, I bet Changkyun is jealous."

Jooheon blushes. "W-why would he be?"

"Pretending nothing is going on between you two?" Hyunwoo steps in. "Look, just don't cause tensions. Go grab Changkyun from the studio and get medicine on your way back. Hoseok and I can help Minhyuk."

Jooheon glances down at Hyungwon attached to him. "He is going to cry. Grab the pacifier from my backpack."

Hoseok searches through the bag and tosses it over. Luckily, Jooheon catches the small pink item. He carefully slips it inbetween Hyungwon's lips and waits for him to start sucking before he stands up. Carefully, he slides off the bed and places Hyungwon in Hoseok's lap, the little's shoulder is pressed against Hoseok's chest and Hoseok wraps his arms around him to steady.

Surprisingly, Hyungwon stays quiet and rests his forehead against Hoseok's neck.

Jooheon smiles. "Okay, Hyungwonnie, I'll see you in a bit, okay?" He ruffles the little's hair before walking out.

"So, Joo is on medicine and Changkyun duty, so what else?" Hyunwoo looks towards Minhyuk.

"We get liquids into their systems and wait."

Hyunwoo takes the yellow cup from Minhyukand hands it to Hyungwon. Letting the pacifier fall into his lap, the little begins drinking it. Kihyun, on the other hand, is still half asleep in Minhyuk's lap.

"Wanna sleep," he mumbles when Minhyuk tries to give him the cup.

Minhyuk runs his fingers through Kihyun's hair. He feels bad, really. He should have told someone Kihyun was feeling sick, and he should just let the boy sleep. His caregiver insticts remind him that he is supposed to take care of the little's, not be their friend, so he forces Kihyun to sit up correctly. The washcloth falls onto his pants.

"Drink half of it and then you can sleep in the living room with Daddy and Hyungwonnie."

Kihyun sniffles, rubbing his eyes. "Sleep."

"Soon. Drink."

With a pout, Kihyun takes the cup and brings it to his lips. After a few seconds, he sets it down and slams his head against Minhyuk's shoulder.

"Okay, okay, let's go in the living room and watch TV."

With Hyunwoo's help, Minhyuk ends up on the couch with Hyungwon's head in his lap and Kihyun snuggled up to his side. A blanket is over them, but Minhyuk doesn't have the energy to fight Hyungwon to get his head out from under the blankets. Hyungwon turns to lie on his side and brings his knees closer to the rest of his body, and Minhyuk adjusts the washcloth back over his forehead.

Kihyun turns on some cartoon and  _finally_ settles down. Minhyuk is silently thankful for the pacifiers in their mouths to keep them quiet.

It takes a few minutes for Hyungwon to fall asleep, fifteen minutes for Kihyun to fall asleep, and an hour for Minhyuk to do the same.

-

Hyungwon wakes up to being unbearably hot, but his entire body is shaking. More importantly, Minhyuk and Kihyun are gone. All that's left is a blanket over his whole body.

He pulls the blanket from over his head and still sees no sign of anyone. The house is quiet.

He thinks back to his previous caregiver, the one who abandoned him frequently. Was Minhyuk going to be like that too?

He cries out loudly; Minhyuk is gone, and he is all alone. He hates being alone. Why did Minhyuk leave? Did he act bad? Was he not good enough?"

He hears sounds from the kitchen followed by Hyunwoo stumbling into the living room. "Hyungwon?"

"Woo," the little raises his arms, and Hyunwoo picks him up before sitting down.

"Daddy and Kihyunnie are in the bathroom right now."

"Want."

Hyunwoo gently brushes Hyungwon's hair away from his face. "No, Kihyunnie is throwing up."

Hyungwon makes a face of disgust before pouting.

"Yes, you're very cute, but you still won't get what you want. Joo is back with Kyun and medicine, so why don't we try to eat something?"

Hesitantly, Hyungwon nods, climbing off Hyunwoo's lap. He extends his hand for Hyunwoo to hold.

_He must really be feeling sick if he wants someone to touch him who isn't Minhyuk, Jooheon, or Hoseok._

Hyunwoo stands up and takes his hand, leading him into the kitchen. "We will eat something small, okay?  I don't know if you are sick with the same thing Kihyun has."

Hyungwon sits down in a chair at the table and yawns, watching Hyunwoo take cereal out of the cabnit and pouring it in to a bowl. Its pointless to give Hyungwon a spoon because he won't use it, so Hyunwoo just hands him the bowl and sits across from him.

Quietly, he takes a handful and shoves it in his mouth, and Hyunwoo holds in a laugh because he looks ridiculous. He still smiles fondly at the male before remembering that he should check on Kihyun and Minhyuk.

"I'll be back."

He recieves a pout, but it doesn't stop Hyunwoo from standing up. Hyunwoo walks past Hyungwon and goes straight to the bathroom. The door is already open slightly, so he pushes past.

As he feared, Kihyun is half asleep on the floor with his head rested on Minhyuk's knee. Minhyuk is sitting on the edge of the bathtub, petting Kihyun's hair. He glances up.

"Should we call someone?" Minhyuk asks so quietly, like he is scared of the answer. "W-what if he gets caught?"

Hyunwoo runs a hand through his hair. "I don't know. It could be something seriously like the flu or something simple like a stomach virus."

"What should I do? What do you want to do?"

Minhyuk looks like a mess. His hair is sticking up and he looks like he hasn't slept in weeks. His eyes are filled with worry, and he hasn't changed out of his sweatpants and t-shirt yet.

"I think if he doesn't feel better by tomorrow, we need to call a doctor. Keep a close eye on him. If he gets worse, tell me. It probably isn't the flu because Hyungwon just has the common cold."

Minhyuk nods. "O-okay. I think I'm going to try and get him to drink something more." He changes his voice. "Kihyunnie, baby, you wanna go see Hyungwon?"

"He woke up," Hyunwoo tells him. "He is eating right now."

Relieved, Minhyuk smiles. Carefully, he lifts Kihyun's head and stands up. "Come on, baby. Let's go."

It takes him a minute, but Kihyun stands up and lets himself be led into the kitchen. Hyungwon is still there, sleepily eating his cereal, and his eyes light up at the sight of Kihyun and Minhyuk, not noticing Hyunwoo's absence.

"Daddy!"

"Hey, baby boy." He picks up Kihyun and sets him in the chair. He leans over and kisses the top of Hyungwon's head.

"Kihyunnie okay?"

Minhyuk hums. "He's okay."

Hyunwoo enters the room holding their cups and goes to the refrigerator to refill them.

"You know, you're pretty good at this," Minhyuk says.

The leader laughs. "I like kids. Hoseok wants to have like 5."

Minhyuk lowers his voice. "That can never happen though, can it?"

"He thinks it can. Once our contract is over, he wants to leave the company and adopt. No one in Korea is going to give a gay couple kids though, and I don't think he can get that through his head." Hyunwoo walks back over with the cups. "He wants to produce songs forever. And me? What if I don't want to leave the company?"

"You'll figure it out," Minhyuk pats his shoulder and takes the baby cups. "Drink." He sets them on the table.

Kihyun pouts. "No."

"Kihyun."

Slowly, he reaches over and takes it. Minhyuk watches as he drinks it.

The biggest fight is when he takes out medicine. Kihyun needs anti-nausea medicene and Hyungwon needs it for his cold.

"No!" Hyungwon climbs into Kihyun's lap. "Bad!"

Kihyun whimpers from underneath him. "Daddy, Hyungwonnie saids no."

"Yeah, I know he said no, but he still has to take it."

Kihyun pouts.

Hyunwoo speaks up, "What if Daddy buys you some stuff once you aren't sick anymore, hm? Don't you want toys and clothes?"

Hyungwon easily opens his mouth and lets Hyunwoo put medicene in his mouth. After Hyungwon leaves, Kihyun easily complies as well.

"Well now I owe them stuff," Minhyuk glances over at Hyunwoo.

"They need stuff anyways. They get so bored sometimes, Min."

"They are lucky they are cute." He mumbles before following them in the living room.

Somehow, they end up back in their original position: Minhyuk in between them with Hyungwon's head in his lap and Kihyun pressed against him. Hyunwoo tosses a blanket over them.

"Let them rest. You should too. They should feel better later. See you later Min."

Minhyuk sighs. "Thank you, Hyunwoo."

The leader smiles. "Really, none of us mind helping with them, so don't feel bad. Get some rest, Min."

"Thank you," he repeats.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the feedback.  
> What would you rather see next:  
> 1\. Changkyun and the littles  
> 2\. Minhyuk is gone from the dorm when Kihyun drops into his little space (ultimately causing Hyungwon to drop too)  
> 3\. A normal day in the dorm (which means play times and cute shit)  
> 4\. Or any other suggestions!!


	9. Chapter 9

Changkyun doesn't like conflicts. If there is a potential fight in the air, he will hide in his studio until everyone calms down.

That's why he doesn't come home until 11 P.M. when everyone is passed out. Not that everyone is tense, but he hasn't been getting along with Jooheon lately. Needless to say, he is jealous and never gets attention anymore.

He is terrified they will abandon him. All he can think about is the hate he got from No Mercy. He wants them to treat him like the youngest again, not like a stranger living in their own home.

When he stumbles into the dorm, the last thing he expects is Kihyun sitting on the couch, sleepily rubbing his eyes. As usual, he wears no pants and has on one of Minhyuk's hoodies. Tightly in one of his arms is his teddy bear, Woos, and in his mouth clearly is a pacifier.

Changkyun is reluctant to take the spot of a caretaker. He doesn't want to hold it against them that Jooheon doesn't give him attention anymore. It's not their fault that Changkyun isn't as interesting or cute. More importantly, Changkyun doesn't feel confident in his skills as a caregiver.

Minhyuk seemed to easily take on the role, as did Hoseok and Hyunwoo. It took a month or so for Jooheon to adjust, but he also learned to care for them. Yet, Changkyun hasn't even been acknowledged.

What if he hurt one of them? What if he wasn't as fun?

Kihyun glances over his shoulders, and his eyes shine excitedly when he sees Changkyun. He doesn't seem to notice how exhausted the rapper really is. Instead, he starts babbling, pacifier falling from his mouth.

"Kyun! Pway! KIhyunnie wants," is all Changkyun can understand.

Reluctantly, Changkyun walks over to Kihyun, glancing at the cartoon that is playing. "Where's-" he clears his throat awkwardly. "Where's your Daddy?" He tries the sweetest voice he can manage.

Kihyun makes a face before frowning. "Sleep."

Changkyun really wants to disappear. Not only is Kihyun in his little space, but no one else is here with him.

"You just woke up and felt little?" He mumbles. The rapper slowly sits down on the couch next to Kihyun. "Where's Joo?"

He feels weird talking like this. Sure, its how the littles like to be spoken to, but it is strange doing it the first time. Changkyun has never even taken care of kids besides Monsta X Ray.

"Sleep. Time to pway!"

There isn't much they can do at 11 at night, especially when they have practice in the morning. Changkyun goes through his options. He could get Kihyun to color, or maybe they could play a quiet game of tag. Kihyun also likes just playing with his stuffed animals too.

The quietest one is probably coloring though, so he stands up. "I'll be right back."

He leaves and returns seconds later with colored pencils and pieces of paper. Kihyun's eyes shine, and he excitedly jumps onto the floor, sitting in front of the table that sits in front of the couch.

Changkyun sits down next to him and sets the colored pencils and paper down. Immediately, Kihyun takes a red colored pencil and starts running it all over a piece of paper.

He isn't very good at drawing, but he seems to have fun. Changkyun watches in awe, amazed at how relaxed he seems. Kihyun is smiling brightly and babbling to Changkyun.

It's cute.

Changkyun wants to protect him from all the bad things in the world. He wants to hug him. Kihyun needs someone, and Changkyun is-

It hits him.

His caregiver instincts kicked in, and now he gets it. He understands why everyone is so distracted by the littles. He understands the need to comfort them and make sure they are okay. It's simply instincts.

Changkyun smiles softly at Kihyun. "Wow, that's pretty."

The main vocalist hums. "It Daddy."

Changkyun doesn't see how it is Minhyuk at all, but he nods his head. Truthfully, the scribbles don't really make anything, but Kihyun seems happy enough.

Carefully, Changkyun reaches for the red pacifier and puts it back into Kihyun's mouth; it's late and it's time to get Kihyun settled down.

"Kyun," he says after a moment.

Changkyun moves to rest his back against the couch, allowing Kihyun to crawl on his lap and rest his head against the rapper's chest. He rubs the little's back.

It feels natural. He doesn't have to force himself; he doesn't have to overthink. He just does what his instincts tell him to. It's nice, maybe it relaxes him a bit too.

_He's cute, too cute for his own good._

Changkyun glances back down at Kihyun and holds in a laugh. He is seriously cute. His pacifier is firmly between his lips, barely moving due to him sucking on it. His face is pressed against Changkyun's shirt, and his left fist is gripping the rapper's shirt like a lifeline.

Changkyun is exhausted too. He is sick of avoiding the dorms and sleeping in the studio. Truthfully, if he could do anything, he would slide into Jooheon's bed, but he can't because he hasn't done that in weeks.

Well, he probably could, but Kihyun is also attached to him.

"You ready to go to bed, Ki?"

Kihyun shakes his head. "Not done." He says, muffled by the pacifier.

_Does he...does he think that I'll go back to avoiding him? Is that what this is about?_

"You're really sleepy. I can lie you down with Hyungwonnie and-"

"No," he whines loudly, whimpering a bit. "Want Kyun."

"Okay sweetie. I'll be right here I'm not going anywhere."

Kihyun seems to relax a bit, but he still fights to keep his eyes open. Changkyun feels terrible. He didn't realize avoiding Jooheon would affect Kihyun so much. Of course he would want support from the whole group, but Changkyun didn't expect Kihyun to actually want everyone as a caregiver.

He watches Kihyun twist his head back to the cartoons; Kihyun is getting grouchy, the rapper can clearly see that.

"Why don't we go lie down with Joo, hm? Would you feel better then?"

Kihyun makes a high pitched whine before rubbing his eyes and nodding. "Joo and Kyun."

Changkyun smiles fondly. "Okay, well I'm not as strong and your Daddy and Seok, so can you walk with me?"

Kihyun stands up and takes Changkyun's hand and grabs his bear Woos, allowing the rapper to stand up as well. He carefully guides the little to their bedroom. The night light is off, which means that neither of them were little when they feel asleep.

What probably happened was Kihyun woke up and felt little, so he grabbed his pacifier and bear and decided to watch cartoons. He probably didn't want to wake up Minhyuk.

Changkyun moves to turn on the nightlight and releases Kihyun's hand. Jooheon is on the bed lying on his back, so Kihyun stumbles over and lies down with his head on Jooheon's chest and Changkyun slips behind him. Carefully, he throws an arm over Kihyun.

Kihyun moves around for a second before lying completely still, and Changkyun sighs in relief. He has time to think.

He can be a caretaker. He shouldn't hold it against the littles that Jooheon won't spend time with him.

The rapper's eyes fall closed.

He can deal with emotions in the morning.

-

He didn't count on Hyungwon waking up first. Usually, he sleeps the latest.

So why is the first thing Changkyun sees is Hyungwon sitting on Jooheon, whining to Kihyun?

The elder little is still half asleep, yawning softly. Jooheon hasn't moved an inch from where he was.

"Kihyunnie," he whines again.

Kihyun finally stirs, lifting his head. "Shh. Sleeping."

"I'm awake," Changkyun mumbles.

Hyungwon doesn't look nearly as trusting as Kihyun was. He looks cautious, maybe a bit frightened. The little gently pushes Jooheon.

Finally, the younger's eyes open. "Well, good morning Hyungwonnie and Kihyunnie," he pauses. "Changkyun?"

"We'll talk later."

Jooheon rubs his eyes. "Okay, well, you boys ready to go eat breakfast? We have practice in a bit."

Both Kihyun and Hyungwon scramble to get out of bed. Kihyun's pacifier is long gone, somewhere lost in the bed, but Changkyun decides he can search for it later.

Hyungwon patiently waits for Jooheon and takes his hand when he stands up. Kihyun takes his other hand, leaving Changkyun to follow behind.

They all walk into the kitchen together, and the littles immediately let go of Jooheon and sit at the table.

"Go grab them cereal, but no milk. You can put milk in their cups. I'll be right back," Jooheon tells him, almost distantly.

Changkyun hangs his head like he is being scolded but nods. He begins to do as Jooheon said. He pours cereal into two bowls and fills their baby cups with milk.

As soon as he sets them on the table, Kihyun grabs a bowl and takes cereal to shove it in his mouth. Hyungwon is less graceful and ends up getting half of his on the floor.

Changkyun sits down, watching them carefully.

After a minute, the other caregivers step into the kitchen. At the sight of Minhyuk, both of their eyes shine, but they don't get up. Instead, Minhyuk walks over and kisses both of their foreheads.

The rapper is in awe. They fit perfectly together.

"We have practice in a bit," Hyunwoo reminds them. "I'm not sure how willing they will be to be big again."

Hoseok pouts. "But they are so cute like this. They haven't been little in a few days."

Kihyun continues to shove food down his throat, but Hyungwon stops to stare at Changkyun.

"Kyun no like Wonnie," he says softly, looking down at his cereal.

"That's not true, baby," Minhyuk says, gently petting his hair. "It's not true at all. He is just slow to warm up to people."

Hyungwon pouts. "Wonnie bad?"

"No," Changkyun cuts in. "No, you're such a good boy, Hyungwon. I'm sorry."

The little seems to be having an internal war as he stares at his bowl. Biting his lip, he lifts his head and reaches his arms out to Changkyun.

The rapper struggles a lot, but he barely lifts Hyungwon enough to bring him to his lap. "I'm so sorry, Wonnie. I don't hate you."

Hyungwon settles down with his back pressed against Changkyun's chest. He quietly returns to his cereal.

Changkyun vows never to ignore the littles again.

-

"I'm sorry," Changkyun mumbles, staring at the floor. "I didn't mean to avoid everyone like that."

Minhyuk sighs, "It isn't your fault. You are the youngest after all, and we stopped treating you like it.  It's our fault too."

The living room is tense with everyone but the littles. There is unspoken words and questions hanging in the air, but no one asks the question on their minds.

_Changkyun, why didn't you tell us you wanted attention?_

"Yeah, its our job to protect you too," Hoseok says, fingers carding through Changkyun's hair.

He missed this. He missed being the baby of the group.

Jooheon finally speaks up, "You don't have to be little for us to take care of you, you know." He leans foreward to gently kiss Changkyun. "You just have to speak up."

Changkyun's eyes fall closed. He finally feels like the dorm is his house. All of his fears of being abandoned disappear.

"Let's get some sleep," Hyunwoo interrupts.

There is still unsaid words and questions, but they part ways anyways.

There will always be another day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooo now what do you guys want to see?? Give me suggestions or something lol


	10. Chapter 10

Hoseok notices it first. He sees the way Kihyun occationally stares at the door or glances towards his room. At first he thinks he just misses Minhyuk, but he is proven wrong whenever Kihyun pushes Hyungwon away when he tries to cuddle with him.

Kihyun isn't feeling right.

Hoseok catches him in the bathroom floor, his thumb dangerously close to his lips. His light colored hair is a messy, and tears stain his cheeks. He is still wearing tight black jeans, but now he has Minhyuk's blue hoodie on.

"Oh sweetie," he sits on the floor in front of Kihyun. "Minhyuk will be home soon."

Kihyun seems to be fighting himself, somewhere in between fully stuffing his thumb in his mouth or running the hell out. Hoseok is unsure if he should push him over the edge.

When was the last time he was little?

It was two weeks ago when Hoseok and Hyunwoo cared for him while Minhyuk cared for Hyungwon.

How often does he need to be little then?

He racks his brain, thinking back to what Minhyuk said before he left.

_"I'm leaving to hang out with some old friends from high school. Kihyun and Hyungwon are sleeping in their own beds. They probably won't slip into their headspace, but if one does, the other will too. By the way, Hoseok, next time you and Hyunwoo fuck on the-"_

Okay he doesn't need to remember the rest. The important thing is that Kihyun and Hyungwon are probably not supposed to slip.

"Kihyun," he speaks normally. "Hey, what's going on? Hyungwon is upset you won't talk to him. He is sulking in the living room."

It's too late. Kihyun is too far gone. Hoseok releases a sigh, watching the boy stuff his thumb in his mouth. So, Kihyun is feeling littler today, and Hyungwon is probably going to slip too. On a normal day, it would be fine, but Hoseok and Jooheon are the only ones left home.

He forms a plan: avoid Hyungwon and keep quiet.

"Kihyunnie, baby," Hoseok stands up and picks Kihyun up. "Gosh, you're such a big boy, huh?"

Kihyun giggles.

Hoseok stumbles out of the bathroom and slowly makes his way into Kihyun's room. He sets Kihyun on the bed.

He does know one thing: Hyungwon hates being in his little space when Minhyuk isn't around. Hoseok has seen him stare at the toy cars longingly, but he wouldn't do anything because Minhyuk wasn't home.

So if he does slip, Hyungwon is going to be more of a handful than Kihyun.

He quietly goes to the boys' little drawer and pulls out Kihyun's blue pacifier and a small car. Slowly, they have been getting more little stuff, but they still don't have much. Truthfully, they need clothes, but Hoseok isn't going to make Minhyuk buy it if he doesn't want to. He will just wait until Hyunwoo caves.

They defiently need more toys besides cars though. It's not like Minhyuk doesn't want to buy things for them. He thinks its a good way to get caught. Hoseok doesn't care as much because the company can't really do anything to them, just scold them. As long as no one outside the company figures it out, they are safe.

He sits next to Kihyun and places the pacifier between his lips before setting the car in his lap. "You have to be extra quiet, okay?"

Kihyun looks confused, but he jumps onto the floor and begins rolling the car back and forth. It's quiet for a bit, but then he starts babbling.

And the door opens.

"Um, I thought Min said they would be okay?" Jooheon says slowly.

"I did too, but I found Kihyun crying." He pauses. "Where's Hyungwon?"

"Sleeping on the couch. He says he doesn't feel well," Jooheon tells Hoseok, stepping into the room to sit in front of Kihyun. "They are really cute, man."

Hoseok hums. "Yeah."

Things stay fairly quiet until Kihyun whines that he is hungry. Cautiously, they walk into the kitchen together. Jooheon starts making a sandwich while Hoseok sits Kihyun down in a chair.

"Daddy?" He says softly, like he just noticed Minhyuk's absence.

"He's not here. He'll be back soon though," Hoseok combs his fingers through Kihyun's hair.

"Ow!" Jooheon suddenly shouts.

Hoseok rushes over and releases a large sigh at the scene.

Of course Jooheon would cut his own finger the day they needed to be quiet. It isn't big, but it isn't small by any means. Hoseok motions for him to go and takes the knife to wash it.

When he turns back around, he is greeted by Hyungwon sleepily standing in the kitchen, looking around like he is lost. He is rubbing his eyes, trying to stay awake. His black hair is curled up a bit from where he slept.

Catiously, Hoseok sets down the knife and takes a step towards Hyungwon. "Hyungwon?"

He isn't sure how far gone the poor boy is, but he is pretty sure he already knows.

"It's okay, baby boy. You can be little. I'm right here."

Hyungwon mumbles something before walking forward and pressing himself against Hoseok. Even though he is a bit taller, he tries to hide his face against Hoseok's neck.

Hoseok wraps his arms around the male's small frame. "It's okay."

"Hungry," Kihyun whines, interrupting them and reminding Hoseok that he really needs to make lunch before he starves the babies.

"Okay baby, just wait for Jooheonie to get back and then you can eat. We can just have peanut butter sandwiches instead."

Without warning, Hyungwon bursts into tears. He steps back from Hoseok and sits on the floor. Pulling his knees to his chest, he cries louder.

Jooheon runs into the kitchen. "What did you do to him?"

"Nothing!"

Jooheon crouches down in front of him. "Hi sweetie, what's wrong?"

"D-daddy," he quiets down.

"I told Minhyuk it was a bad day to leave," Hoseok huffs.

"Daddy's not here right now," Jooheon reaches out to pet Hyungwons hair. "He'll be back later, I promise."

Hyungwon whimpers. "Want now."

"But Kihyunnie and Seokie are here," Jooheon encourages. "Come on, let's go sit down with Kihyunnie."

Hyungwon hesitantly stands up, allowing Jooheon to lead him to the table. He sits down, staring at Kihyun. "Kihyunnie," he whimpers.

Hoseok orders, "Go finish making sandwiches so these poor babies can eat."

Hoseok walks to the cabinet and pulls out two of their infant cups, a yellow one for Hyungwon and a red one for Kihyun. He opens them and goes to the refrigerator.

"You know," Jooheon starts, "Minhyuk really shouldn't have left if they haven't been little in a while. I mean, he's the best caretaker, but he should have known this was bound to happen."

The visual reaches for the apple juice. "Yeah. Especially since Hyunwoo and Changkyun are also gone." He quietly pours it in the two cups.

"Kihyunnie," Hyungwon whimpers again.

Hoseok quickly puts the juice up and screws the tops onto the cups. He takes them both back to the table.

He blinks in confusion when he sees Hyungwon sitting in Kihyun's lap. "Sweetie, Kihyun doesn't want to hold you," Hoseok sets the cups down and picks up Hyungwon. He sits down on a chair with Hyungwon in his lap, facing Hoseok with his head rested on Hoseok's shoulder and a hand gripping his shirt.

"Do you think he is okay?" Jooheon asks slowly, bringing two sandwiches over on one plate and placing it in the center of the table.

"He wasn't okay when he was big earlier. He was pretty upset Kihyun pushed him away, so maybe his little self is upset too? I don't know how it works. He might just miss Minhyuk."

Jooheon hands a sandwich to Kihyun, watching how he tries to shove the maximum amount that he can into his mouth. He sighs, "Kihyunnie, you're making a mess." He glances over at Hoseok. "Can you get him to eat?"

Hoseok looks at the boy desperately clinging to him. "I'm not really sure. I don't want him to freak out again. What does Min usually do to soothe him?"

"Usually Min just being there soothes him when he is super upset."

Hoseok sighs and hands Hyungwon the yellow cup. The little quietly sips on it, still tightly gripping Hoseok.

"Do they think of us as caretakers?" Jooheon asked, reaching to pet Hyungwon's hair.

"I think they only think of Min like that. They still won't come to us if they feel little."

"Kihyun, you cannot put your hand in your mouth," Jooheon pulls the boy's hand away. "Half of the peanut butter is on your face, it's not even on your hand."

The eldest glances over to see Kihyun practically covered in peanut butter. "Did he even eat any?"

"At least he ate the bread, but he is going to flip when he realizes this means he needs a bath." He smiles fondly at Kihyun.

Hoseok gently pulls the cup away from Hyungwon. "Have you eaten today, baby?"

Hyungwon nods.

"Okay, then, Jooheon, you can bathe Kihyun, and I can have quiet time with Hyungwon."

Jooheon shakes his head. "You should bathe Kihyun. I don't...I don't trust myself. Last time Changkyun was in the shower with me and asked me to wash his hair, I got shampoo in his eyes."

"Wanna go to Joo?" Hoseok gently asks Hyungwon.

Cup still in his hand, Hyungwon reaches for Jooheon. Happily, Jooheon picks him up out of Hoseok's lap and walks into the living room, leaving Hoseok to stare at the mess of Yoo Kihyun.

Somehow the little managed to get it in his hair. He knew Minhyuk always fed the littles by hand, but he never knew why they couldn't eat by themselves.

"Kihyun, you ready to take a bath?"

"Daddy."

"He isn't here right now, Ki. Come on, let's go."

Relucantly, Kihyun follows Hoseok into Kihyun's shared bedroom. After searching, he grabs Kihyun's underwear and his only onesie (the hamster one he hates and loves).

"Want," Kihyun reaches out.

"You have to get a bath first," Hoseok tells him, pulling on his hand to lead him into the bathroom.

He decides to just leave the bathroom door open since Kihyun doesn't seem to care. After starting the water, he carefully takes a washcloth and wipes Kihyun's face clean. Kihyun stands still, and he even begins to take off his own clothes to help.

Getting him in the bath is an entirely different story.

"Want Daddy and bear!"

Hoseok rubs his temples. He couldn't give either of those things. He can't just take the bear in the bath with him, and he can't ask Minhyuk to come home.

"What if-"

"No!" Kihyun cries.

Finally giving up, Hoseok pulls his phone out of his pocket. "I'll call Daddy after your bath."

Kihyun quickly climbs into the bathtub and stares at Hoseok like he's done nothing wrong.

Hoseok laughs.

-

After dressing Kihyun, Hoseok carries the sleepy boy into the living room and sets him on the couch next to Hyungwon. Jooheon is for some reason on the floor with his head rested against the couch.

"You tired, Joo?" Hoseok asks.

Jooheon nods, yawning. "I don't know how Min does it."

"He loves them more than anything," Hoseok reminds him, dialing a familar number.

He turns it on speaker and nearly dies from laughter at the littles' faces when a voice comes through it.

" _Yeah, Hoseok? I'm still-"_

"Daddy!" Kihyun reaches for the phone excitedly, but Hoseok decides against handing it to him.

Minhyuk hesistence is obvious. _"B-baby. Hi..What are you up to?"_

"Want Daddy," Hyungwon whines.

 _"I'll be home really soon_ ," Minhyuk tells them. _"Can you be good boys for Hoseok?"_

Both the littles babble something no one can understand.

_"I have to go, but I promise I'll be home soon."_

The line falls dead, and Kihyun pouts.

"Want now."

Hyungwon seems to agree, but his eyes return to the cartoon playing. Jooheon easily slips the pacifier into Hyungwon's mouth to make him drowsy; hopefully Minhyuk will be here by the time they wake up.

Kihyun, however, puts up a fight. He whines at Hoseok, begging to be held. He calms down once Hoseok lets Kihyun crawl in his lap and rest his head on the older male's shoulder.

"I'm so exhausted," Jooheon whines.

"So are they."

Hyungwon whines through his pacifier, mindlessly reaching for Kihyun's hand. He attempts to also crawl into Hoseok's lap, but Kihyun swats him away.

Hyungwon sniffles. "Misses Daddy. Want Kihyunnie." His bottom lip wobbles and his pacifier falls from his mouth.

Kihyun, with a pout, slides off Hoseok and settles next to Hyungwon. The younger immediately crawls into Kihyun's lap, straddling him.

"Misses Daddy," he whimpers.

Kihyun knocks his forehead against Hyungwon's gently. He doesn't really need to say anything; Hyungwon calms and settles down with his head on Kihyun's shoulder. He tightly grips onto the elder's onesie.

Jooheon sighs out of relief and Hoseok smiles fondly.

-

Minhyuk walks into a silent dorm where he finds Jooheon sleeping on the floor with Hoseok resting his head on the younger's thigh. Kihyun is sitting with Hyungwon in his lap, both fast asleep.

He is a bit disappointed he was greeted by two excited littles, but the cute sight makes up for it. After taking a picture, he kicks Hoseok.

"What? Oh- hey Min."

"How long have they been out?"

"An hour?"

Minhyuk gently lifts Hyungwon's body from off of Kihyun and places him next to the elder. "Come on, babies. Daddy is home."

Kihyun lifts is head first and his eyes flutter open. "Daddy?"

Minhyuk smiles and kisses his forehead. "Yeah baby. I missed my baby boys."

Hyungwon's head falls onto Kihyun's shoulder, but he shows no signs of waking up. They look adorable; Minhyuk's heart feels so full.

The elder male struggles to keep his eyes open. "Tired."

"Okay, baby. Let's get you and Hyungwon to bed," Minhyuk kisses him again.

Kihyun stands up and yawns, nearly tripping over Hoseok. Minhyuk picks up Hyungwon and walks into their bedroom, with Kihyun following.

He lies Hyungwon on the bed first before lying down himself, his back to the bed. Kihyun takes his bear and cuddles up to Minhyuk's chest.

Minhyuk feels bad for leaving them alone.

He quietly vows to himself that he will be a better caretaker.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also so tell me which chapter you want next.  
> 1\. Regular day at the dorm.  
> 2\. Min gets sick (and the littles try to care for him)  
> 3\. Time outs
> 
> Or any other suggestion, im open to anything!!  
> (I really wanted to make changkyun into a little but i figured people wouldnt like that, bur give me your opinion?)


	11. Chapter 11

Minhyuk isn't stupid. He knows when something is wrong.

It doesn't matter if his head hurts or he feels disoriented, he still pushes himself at practice. He pushes himself until he stumbles and falls down. The music continues, but he just feels so tired that he doesn't get up.

Everyone stops, and immediately two people are attatched to him. Kihyun automatically tries to mother him; he lifts up Minhyuk's bangs and feels his forehead. Hyungwon, on the other hand, sits in front of him with his bottom lip wobbling.

Minhyuk swats Kihyun's hand away and cups Hyungwon's face. "It's okay. I'm okay guys."

These days, it's really easy to cause Hyungwon to drop, even if he doesn't do it every day. It's at least once a week, but sometimes more. When something stresses him out, he immediately wants to drop.

Minhyuk should have known it was a bad day to push himself. Now Hyungwon and Kihyun are worrying when it's Minhyuk's job to care for them.

"Really, I'm fine, Hyungwon," he says gently.

"Yeah, you look real great," Changkyun says sarcastically from behind him. "Look at yourself, Min. You're on the floor of a practice room."

"I'm just disoriented, that's all. I'm tired too." He doesn't take his eyes off of Hyungwon.

All the signs tell him Hyungwon is panicking. He looks so worried. His lip is still wobbling, his eyes are becoming wet, but he doesn't reach out to touch Minhyuk.

Kihyun drops the mother act and becomes almost identical to Hyungwon. "Are you okay? Did you slip?" His lisp is  _so_ apparent. "It feels like you have a fever."

Minhyuk feels so dumb. If he didn't fall like an idiot, the littles wouldn't be worrying about him. He would be able to go and play with them at home.

But his head aches, and he can only keep up an act for so long. So, when Kihyun pouts and a tear slips down Hyungwon's cheek, he confesses.

"My head just hurts. I think I'm getting a sick, but I'll be fine, babies." He says, glancing between Hyungwon and Kihyun.

Hyungwon blinks his tears away. "Daddy sick?"

Minhyuk fucked up. How are they supposed to finish practice?

"Helps," Kihyun says, leaning forward and kissing Minhyuk's cheek.

It's so cute. Minhyuk guesses he got the idea from himself when he kissed their foreheads when they were sick and sad. He smiles softly at the gesture and mumbles a soft "thanks".

"Can we even finish practice like this?" Hoseok speaks up. "Hynwoo, the babies are little and Minhyuk isn't feeling good."

Hyunwoo glances over at the three, watching Hyungwon place his hand over Minhyuk's heart. Apparently he is pretending to be a doctor. Kihyun is pulling on Minhyuk's arm and babbling.

"I guess...we will go home. Minhyuk, get plenty of rest. We can take care of the littles. Practice is supposed to end in fifteen minutes anyways."

Minhyuk spreads his legs to accommodate for Hyungwon to sit in between them as he pretends to evaluate Minhyuk.

"Daddy sick," Hyungwon says after a minute.

"Really?" Minhyuk pretends to be surprised.

Hyungwon nods. "Kihyunnie and Hyungwonnie make better."

"D-daddy?" Kihyun pulls on Minhyuk's hoodie sleeve.

"I'm okay, baby."

"Let's get everyone home," Hoseok crouches down to lift Kihyun up.

The little wraps his legs around Hoseok's waist and desperately clings to him, but his eyes don't leave Minhyuk.

"Come on, Dr. Hyungwonnie," Jooheon chuckles. "Your daddy can't carry you right now. Why don't you come hold me and Kyunnie's hands?"

Hyungwon pouts, but he stands up and rushes over to take Jooheon's hand before taking Changkyun's as well. Fondly, Jooheon kisses his forehead.

Minhyuk finally stands up. "My head just really fucking hurts. So if you could keep them quiet in the van, I'd appreciate it."

Surprisingly, the littles just sleep on the way home. Hyungwon is feeling big enough to sleep in his own seat with his head rested on the window, but Kihyun a bit different. His legs are across Hoseok's lap and his thumb is in his mouth.

"Min, you feeling okay?" Hyunwoo asks.

"Just feeling a bit cold. I feel bad I can't, well, baby the babies. Kihyunnie is feeling littler than normal, and he is just so cute. I wish I could be there for him."

"Hyungwon is set on taking care of you," Hoseok reminds him. "Also, where is a pacifier around here when you need one?"

"My bag is at home," Minhyuk says with a sigh. "Kihyun is going to be in such a bad mood without it when he wakes up."

Jooheon interrupts. "Stop stressing. Just relax. We can handle the littles."  
  
  


 

They can't.

They manage to get Kihyun inside by Hoseok carrying him, but Hyungwon wakes up and cries for Minhyuk.

Hyungwon climbs out of the van and attaches himself to Minhyuk's arm, releasing a sob. The caregiver shivers, but he manages to weakly lift Hyungwon up. The little wraps his legs around Minhyuk's waist and hugs his neck.

Minhyuk stumbles inside the dorm. "What's wrong, baby boy?"

"Hyungwonnie scared."

"Oh baby, did you have another nightmare?" He asks weakly.

Minhyuk feels bad for him really. Everytime has gone into his little space the past two weeks, he has had a nightmare. Minhyuk does his best to comfort him, but he can usually only be eased by lying on Minhyuk for an hour.

He sits down on the couch with Hyungwon on his lap. His head is pounding, but he wants to baby Hyungwon.

Hoseok returns from the bedroom without Kihyun and sighs. "Okay, Ki is down for a nap right now. Hyungwon, you wanna go to sleep. baby?"

When he shakes his head, Hoseok walks closer. "Why don't we go make Daddy food to help him feel better, hm?"

"You know Kihyun is going to be upset if you leave him out," Hyunwoo reminds them as he walks over to sit next to Minhyuk.

"He's too little today for me to trust him in the kitchen," Hoseok says. "Hyungwon, you ready?"

Hyungwon quietly nods; he kisses Minhyuk's cheek before standing up. "Fix Daddy."

Minhyuk hums in agreement. "Dr. Hyungwonnie can make me better, yeah?"

The little flashes a smile, and his nightmare is long forgotten. Excitedly, he takes Hoseok's hand and drags the elder male into the kitchen.

"We can just make him some quick soup, okay?" Hoseok begins taking out ingredients.

Hyungwon looks at him with big eyes, watching his every move. Hoseok puts the pot on the stove and quietly starts the broth.

"Stir it for me every once in a while, okay?"

The little nods.

Hoseok turns away and begins cutting up chicken. When he is done, he puts it in a pan. It'll be quicker to cook it before putting it in the soup. Every few seconds, he glances back at Hyungwon, but all he finds is that the boy is continuously stiring the broth. It's not hurting anyone, so Hoseok decides to just let it happen.

Everything goes good until Hyungwon gets bored and wants Minhyuk again.

"No, baby, I need your help, okay?" Hoseok tells him as he puts the cooked chicken into the broth before moving to cut up vegetables.

"Daddy," he whines loudly, glancing at Minhyuk.

"Don't you want to help Daddy get better?" Hoseok tries.

Hyungwon has an internal conflict before ultimately deciding to stir the broth again. Hoseok sighs with relief; now he can actually finish the soup.

When the soup is completed, Hoseok takes a bowl of it to Minhyuk, and Hyungwon watches Minhyuk eat.

"Thank you, baby boy," Minhyuk ruffles his hair.

"Daddy better?"

"Not yet. Hoseok, can you grab me some pain medicine. I think I'm just going to take some and then sleep forever once I'm done eating."

Hyunwoo laughs. "It's just a cold, then?"

"Yeah. What gave you that impression, the twenty used tissues on the floor or the fact that I'm disoriented and trying not to die?" Minhyuk rolls his eyes.

Hoseok leaves only to return shortly with a cup of water and some pills in his hand. Minhyuk smiles gratefully and takes both pills and puts them in his mouth before drinking water.

Minhyuk eats a bit more before placing his bowl down. "Seok, I think I'm gonna go die in my bed for a bit. Kihyun is probably going to wake up when I go in there, so I would appreciate it if you could feed both of them."

"You can count on me," Hoseok smiles.

"Make sure not to let them eat on their own. I know it seems like Hyungwon is feeling bigger, but the boy can't be trusted. Also, he is probably not going to eat without me feeding him, but I need you to try. Tell them they can come take care of me when I wake up if they are good. If Ki is feeling really little, don't be afraid to let Hyungwon help take care of him."

Minhyuk stands up and yawns. "I love you, baby," he tiredly croaks out. "Oh and by the way, since Ki is acting really little, be careful because he probably won't slip back anytime soon. I'll put a diaper on him just in case."

Hyungwon pouts, but he lets Minhyuk walk into his room. A few minutes later, Kihyun is sleepily stumbling out of the room with his favorite pastel blue blanket wrapped around him, his bear in his hand, and a pacifier in his mouth.

Hoseok's heart melts.

At the sight of Hoseok and Hyunwoo, Kihyun rushes over. He quickly places himself in Hyunwoo's lap with his forehead pressed against Hyunwoo's shoulder.

Hyunwoo slips his hand up Kihyun's shirt and gently rubs his back. "Good afternoon, baby. You have a good nap?"

Kihyun hugs his bear to his chest, opting not to respond. Hoseok turns on a cartoon for Hyungwon to watch, long enough for him to speak to Hyunwoo.

"Awe, Ki's eyes are already closed. He is so tired and little today." Hoseok smiles. "But how are the littles going to help Minhyuk feel better? He just needs time."

"Just let Hyungwon pretend to be his doctor again, and Ki is just too little to do anything today. He has barely opened his mouth," Hyunwoo shrugs.

Kihyun's breathing evens out and easily he is back asleep.

"Is it okay to let him sleep this much?" Hyunwoo asks.

"Last night I found him and Hyungwon making out on the couch at like 2 A.M. so I'm sure it won't hurt him to sleep some more."

The leader glances down at the boy slumped against him. "Okay then. We do have to feed them at one point though."

"After this episode."

When the episode ends, Hyungwon happily goes into the kitchen with Hoseok, and Hyunwoo carries Kihyun, leaving his bear and blanket. The leader sits down in a chair with the little still in his lap.

Kihyun starts crying, and Hyunwoo has no idea why.

"Baby," he says, gently shaking Kihyun.

"Kihyunnie blanket," Hyungwon tells him.

_Oh._

The little leaves and returns with Kihyun's blanket before handing it to the said male. Kihyun's eyes dry up and he takes it in one hand. Magically, he goes limp against Hyunwoo's body, and only the leader's arms keep him from sliding off.

Hyungwon happily sits across the table and stares at Hoseok expectantly. The oldest visual quickly puts soup in two bowls and places them on the table before sitting down next to Hyungwon. He takes the spoon and brings up a bit of soup to the boy's lips.

Kihyun doesn't comply at all. He doesn't even let Hyunwoo take his pacifier away.

Hyungwon takes another spoonful of soup from Hoseok before glancing over. "Kihyunnie," he says.

Kihyun lifts his head and looks at Hyungwon.

"Eat."

The main vocalist pouts, but he doesn't resist with the leader gently tugs the pacifier out of his mouth.

With a sigh, he quietly begins feeding Kihyun.

-

"Daddy," Hyungwon places his hand over Minhyuk's heart.

Minhyuk shuffles Kihyun a bit, allowing the little to rest his head on Minhyuk's stomach instead, and the rest of his body falls across Minhyuk's legs.

"What is it, doctor?" Minhyuk plays along. "Am I gonna live?"

Hyungwon pauses before nodding. "Hyungwonnie save Daddy."

Minhyuk holds in a laugh.

He is glad his headache is gone, but now he is still running a fever. Regardless, he decided to let the littles play with him for a bit. He didn't expect Hyungwon to want to play doctor again, and he defiently didn't expect Kihyun to just cling to him.

He doesn't mind though.

Hyungwon takes the wet washcloth and rubs it over Minhyuk's face. "Better?"

Minhyuk bites his lip to keep himself from cackling. "Yeah baby, you're doing good."

Kihyun shuffles on his stomach to lift his head. "Pway?"

"No baby, we can't play right now. Daddy is trying to get better."

Kihyun babbles something along the lines of "Hyungwon be quick" but most of it is just mumbling.

Hyungwon takes a tissue and rubs Minhyuk's nose rather roughly, and ultimately Hoseok decides it was a bad idea to let them try to help.

"Okay Dr. Hyungwon, why don't we go schedule a checkup with Woo since Kyun is at the studio?"

"But Daddy-"

"You don't want to be late, sweetie. Come on. Daddy needs rest."

Hyungwon pouts, but he kisses Minhyuk's forehead and gets off of the bed. Kihyun, however, makes no effort to move. He has no interest in pretending to be a doctor. The whole time he silently lied on Minhyuk.

"Ki, come on, baby," Hoseok encourages.

"No."

"It's fine, Hoseok. He isn't doing anything. I think he just wants to nap," Minhyuk rests his head on the pillow and closes his eyes.

Hoseok releases a sigh. "If he does anything, call for me."

"He won't. Just keep an eye on Hyungwon?"

Hoseok nods and rushes Hyungwon out of the room, leaving Minhyuk to sleep alone with Kihyun.

"Daddy sick?" Kihyun quietly asks.

"I'll be better soon, Ki."

Kihyun settles his head back down on Minhyuk's stomach. "Hyungwonnie fix."

Minhyuk laughs. "Yeah, he will."

-

_**Bonus:** _

Hyungwon pats Hyunwoo's face a couple times before nodding.

"What?" Hoseok says, genuinely confused. "Hyungwon, nothing is wrong with his face. Have you never seen a checkup?"

"Seok, just let him do it," Hyunwoo tells him. "It's keeping him away from Minhyuk."

Hoseok rubs his temples and watches Hyungwon place a hand over his heart. After a few seconds, his eyes widden.

"Broken!"

"What?!" Hoseok and Hyunwoo both say.

"Broken."

"Hyungwon, do you even know how hearts work?" Hoseok sighs.

Hyunwoo chuckles. "Seok, that wasn't even close to my heart. Do  _you_ know how hearts work?"

"Okay Hyungwon, let's go bother Jooheon." Hoseok quickly drags the boy away.

Hyungwon shakes his head and pulls his hand away. Hoseok watches as he steps towards Minhyuk's bedroom and opens the door.

"Sleep."

"Okay, baby, let's put you down for a nap."

Hoseok follows Hyungwon into the room and helps him find his pacifier. Quietly, he tucks the boy in so that Hyungwon can lay next to Kihyun on Minhyuk's stomach.

His heart feels like it might explode.

He loves taking care of the littles.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> not my best chapter, but i wrote it in between reading a book for my college class so yeah whoops


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Changkyun centric, if you don't want to read, you don't have to

He shouldn't be here.

He shouldn't be here at all.

Kihyun is crying his eyes out in the middle of the practice room. Practice starts in an hour, but Changkyun wanted to come early. The last thing he expected was to find Kihyun crying.

"Kyunnie?" The male looks up, eyes staring into Changkyun's soul.

Of course Kihyun dropped into his little space. Changkyun shouldn't be surprised, but he cannot handle this today.

He just got into a huge argument with Jooheon because Jooheon has been spending more time with the littles, Kihyun and Hyungwon, rather than paying attention to Changkyun. Of course Jooheon tried to defend himself, but Changkyun ended up raising his voice before deciding to run away.

The last person he wanted to see was Kihyun.

The company has been on his back about writing raps too. All they do is ask him if he is done yet. He gets scolded constantly because the deadline was last week, but he didn't complete them. He is beyond stressed, especially since the manager texted him a few minutes earlier asking him if he is done yet.

Changkyun feels so sad, so broken.

He doesn't want to be in this room.

With shaky legs, he approaches Kihyun. "W-what's wrong?"

"Miss Daddy," he whines.

Changkyun wants to cry too, really. All the insults everyone has been saying lately run through his brain. He thinks about his rap coach's critiques; he isn't good enough. He is reminded of how Jooheon doesn't want to spend time with him. He even thinks of how Hoseok and Hyunwoo never glance at him anymore.

It all feels so heavy on his shoulders.

He wants to cry so bad.

"Let me call him, okay?" Changkyun pats Kihyun's head.

He pulls out his phone and shakily dials Minhyuk's number. He holds the phone up to his ear and waits for the call to go through.

"Changkyun, where the hell are you?! The manager has been worrying himself sick! You can't just leave and not tell anyone!" Minhyuk scolds him.

The weight on his shoulders just feels heavier.

He hates you.

They all hate you.

His legs nearly give out from underneath him. "I-I'm sorry. I went to the company building. Kihyun is here and he needs you."

Minhyuk sighs. "My poor baby boy...I'll be there really soon? Take care of him until I can get there, okay?"

"Okay."

The line goes dead, and Changkyun bites his lip; he doesn't want to deal with Kihyun at all.

"Okay, sweetie, your Daddy is on the way, but I'm here right now," he forces a smile.

Kihyun doesn't return the smile. Instead, he pouts.

I'm just not good enough for anyone.

Changkyun unlocks his phone and opens a game. "Here, play this."

Kihyun immediately gets distracted by it, so the rapper sits down on the bench and pulls his notebook out of his backpack. He turns to the most recent page and stares at the markings.

Every line he has came up with so far wasn't good enough.

He just wants to cry all over again.

Instead of working, he lets his head spin in circles. He thinks back to all the time the members have left him behind in favor of Kihyun and Hyungwon. The entire dorm practically revolves around them, and they just forget about Changkyun. He isn't cute or funny like they are.

They hate Changkyun, and it physically hurts him.

He isn't good enough for the company, for his group, for his parents, for anyone.

By the time Minhyuk and the others show up, Changkyun feels empty. He feels worthless. Why can't he be cute? Why can't he be someone that catches their attention? Is he boring? Is he annoying?

Minhyuk rushes over and picks up Kihyun off the floor. The little releases Changkyun's phone, causing it to fall to the ground. It doesn't break, but there is now a clear crack on the screen.

Changkyun wants to scream, but no words come out.

"Daddy, Daddy! Kihyunnie been good boy!" Kihyun smiles.

Minhyuk sets Kihyun down on his feet, and immediately everyone surronds him.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Hoseok asks.

Kihyun giggles. "Pway!"

"How can we possibly practice with him like this?" Hyunwoo asks with a sigh.

Changkyun feels as if he isn't part of the group. He isn't supposed to be here. Maybe he was originally just supposed to be a backup dancer; maybe he should have been.

Minhyuk places a pacifier in his mouth, and Changkyun notices for the first time that Hyungwon also has a pacifier. "Okay babies, we are going to pretend to be big for a bit, okay? And then when it's done, we can go get Hyunwoo to buy you ice cream."

Hyunwoo raises his eyebrow. "You think it will work?"

"I think its worth a shot."

The youngest rapper's mouth feels dry because for the first time, he realizes how badly he needs a pacifier in his mouth.

He shakes the thought away.

Everyone starts to get in formation for the dance when someone finally looks back at Changkyun.

"Kyun," Hyunwoo calls. "You gonna sit there all day?"

Changkyun feels so sick, but he gets up anyways.

-

"I mean, its okay," his rap coach mumbles, staring at the page in front of him. "I don't think it will fit well with the song though."

His world feels like it's crashing down. There is practically 10 pounds of bricks on his shoulders; at least thats what it feels like. Why does Jooheon's raps always get approved? What's the secret?

"We can try again tomorrow. It's 12 A.M."

Changkyun nods. "Thank you," he manages to say.

He takes his notebook and blinks away tears. Quietly, he gathers his things and leaves the company building.

It's raining, but he can't seem to care. He just wants to go sleep. He just wants to be anywhere but at the company. Truthfully, he doesn't even want to go home. He doesn't want to listen to Kihyun's giggles or see Hyungwon's smile; he doesn't want to watch everyone care about the littles and ignore him.

He walks into the dorm, completely drenched. No one seems to notice.

He hears Kihyun and Minhyuk in the living room, so he goes straight to his room. It's empty for once, so he quietly closes the door and locks it.

He has to try something.

Changkyun opens the littles' drawer and pulls out the green pacifier that the littles refuse to use. With tears in his eyes, he slips it into his mouth.

He feels disgusting, but as soon as he begins sucking on it, he feels the weight off of his shoulders lift.

Without unlocking the door, he drags himself into his bunk. Just for one night, he can indulge.

He pulls the blanket over his body and closes his eyes.

Changkyun finally feels content.

-

He wakes up to banging on the door.

"Changkyun! Why did you lock the door?!"

It's Hoseok's voice; he can register that much. Everything else feels hazy. The pacifier is still securely in his mouth and the room is still empty. The clock reads 2:41 A.M.

He can't be little. Not ever again.

Embarrassed, he quickly takes the pacifier and shoves it under his pillow. He climbs down from the bed and opens the door.

"I'm sorry," he mumbles, still somewhere between dropping into his little space or staying big.

Hoseok sighs. "Why did you lock the door?"

He doesn't have an answer nor does he come up with a lie. Instead he just walks back to his bed and climbs into it.

"Kyun? You good?"

"Never been better."

-

When Changkyun stumbles in the living room, he frowns at the sight. Kihyun is on the floor, all alone, and stacking blocks on top of one another. It's only 8 A.M. so Changkyun got up in search of alone time.

"Kihyun, where's Minhyuk?" He asks with a sigh.

Kihyun turns around, and Changkyun sees the fluffy bear in his arm and the blue pacifier between his lips.

He wants nothing more than to take them away.

"Sweeping."

"Sleeping," Changkyun corrects him. "If he is sleeping, why are you up?"

"Come pway with Kihyunnie!" He begs, though he is halfway muffled by the pacifier

Changkyun knows its a bad idea, but no one is awake to keep an eye on him. He can't exactly leave Kihyun on his own, even though he really wants to.

He sits down next to the little are stares at the colorful blocks. Kihyun had stacked up 5 earlier, only to now push them down.

Changkyun blinks. His head feels hazy, his shoulders feel so heavy. All he wants - no all he needs is to just forget about everything for a few hours.

Quietly, he places a block on top of another one. He repeats the action. Something in his heart is telling him to just fall into his little space already, but he knows the caregivers have their hands full with two littles, not to mention Changkyun knows he isn't as cute.

At least Kihyun is comfortable with himself.

Changkyun stacks a few more blocks on it and smiles proudly.

Until a certain Yoo Kihyun accidently knocks them down.

Something snaps inside of him. It's like the blocks represented him and Kihyun just shoved him. He feels his heart break.

He feels himself drop completely.

He doesn't think about how he has to finish his rap, or how he has lessons later, or how he isn't supposed to be little. All the occupies his mind is that Kihyun knocked down his blocks, and all the caregivers hate him.

He bursts into tears. Kihyun detects the change in the mood and clearly begins to panic.

"Kihyunnie sorry!" He shakes Changkyun.

The younger male pulls his knees up to his chest and cries into them. He hugs them tightly to the rest of his body. He doesn't move when Kihyun shakes him or when he pulls his hair.

Kihyun quickly stands up and runs away, leaving Changkyun all alone.

He hates being alone. He hates everyone abandoning him.

They all hate you. You're a bad boy Changkyun.

He releases another sob, this time his entire body shakes, but he can't stop.

He is pulled out of his thoughts when he feels a hand on his shoulder, and he jerks away.

Please don't touch me. I'm not a bad boy.

Changkyun manages to cry even louder, and he refuses to look up.

"Changkyun?" He hears Minhyuk's unsteady voice. He sounds cautious.

He can't speak. He feels like he is suffocating as he struggles to breathe.

"Kihyun, go get Seok, Woo, and Joo for me," Minhyuk says softly.

Changkyun tugs his knees tighter to his chest. He wants to disappear.

Was he bad? Will they punish him like his previous caregiver did? Did he hurt Kihyun's feelings?

He hears footsteps approach, and a lot of them.

"What's wrong?" Jooheon asks.

Minhyuk shrugs. "Kihyun woke me up and dragged me in here. I don't know why he is crying."

"You don't think...," Hoseok starts. "You don't think Changkyun is..."

"No..." Jooheon says softly. "There's no way..."

"Kyun?" Hoseok calls. "Baby, come here."

Changkyun shakes his head.

"Kyun sad," Kihyun tells them.

"Oh baby," Jooheon says, approaching Changkyun and sitting on the floor next to him. "Baby, come talk to me."

"He's really a little," Hyunwoo mumbles in awe.

Changkyun shys away from Jooheon's touch when he places a hand on the younger's shoulder. His entire body is tense, and he releases another wave of tears.

"Minhyuk, can you go grab me a pacifier that no one uses and get me the bear at the foot of Changkyun's bed? I know you have over 10 pacifiers." Jooheon asks.

The bear is the only gift a fan gave him that Changkyun actually keeps around. He keeps it at the end of his bed, and no one ever questioned why.

Minhyuk quietly leaves the room.

"I should have known," Hoseok says quietly. "He has been so stressed lately and he never wants to be alone with Kihyun and Hyungwon."

"Don't blame yourself," Hyunwoo speaks up. "Changkyun wasn't comfortable coming to us, and we can't change that. We can only offer comfort now."

Minhyuk returns soon and hands the items to Jooheon.

"Hey, sweetie," Jooheon says in his caregiver voice. "I've got your bear and a new pacifier, hm? So why don't you look up for me?"

It takes him a second, but the little lifts his head and eyes the pacifier in Jooheon's hand. Changkyun looks so scared and cautious.

Who hurt him?

"It's okay, baby." Jooheon extends his hand with the pacifier in it. "You can take it."

"Kyun bad boy."

"No, no. Kyun is such a good boy."

Changkyun slowly takes the pacifier out of Jooheon's hand and places it in his mouth. Once he begins sucking on it, he relaxes and his tears slowly disappear.

Jooheon extends his arm to ruffle Changkyun's hair. "Yeah, that's my good boy, hm?" He hands Changkyun the bear.

The little holds it tightly against his chest, and tears gather in fhe corners of his eyes again.

"Maybe, don't touch him?" Minhyuk suggests, sitting on the couch and allowing Kihyun to climb in his lap.

Jooheon nods. "Kyun, you wanna watch some cartoons?"

"Kyun bad," his says, voice slightly muffled.

"God...what happened last time he was little?" Minhyuk asks softly.

"Kyun," Kihyun seems to sense the change in the atmosphere. He speaks quietly. "Kyun, here."

Changkyun seems to relax at Kihyun's voice, so Kihyun continues.

"Kyun," he slides off of Minhyuk and pats the spot on the other side of him, like a barrier to separate the caregiver from Changkyun. "Kyun here."

Cautiously Changkyun stands up and waddles to the couch, climbing next to Kihyun and hugging his arm and holds the bear in his other arm. "Kyun bad."

"What the fuck?" Jooheon mumbles. "Who the hell touched him and made him scared of caregivers? I'll fucking kill him, Min, I-"

"No," Hyunwoo interrupts him. "We can't change the past. We just need to get him to trust us. Kihyun is in no state to care for him, not the way he needs."

Hoseok hums. "He has a point. Kihyun can't care for him, but we can't either."

"Seok. Someone hurt him. I can't just-"

"Jooheon," Hoseok says harshly. "Jooheon, I know you're angry, I know, but Changkyun needs us as caregivers now, okay? He needs us to teach him that he deserves love, Joo. So just take it easy. Take it slow."

Jooheon glances at Changkyun. He looks so sad with teary eyes and his arms gripping onto Kihyun's. Jooheon wants nothing more than to protect him. He wants to keep him locked away from the bad things in the world and hold him close.

I'll show you, baby. I promise, I'll protect you.

He isn't sure how long they have with little Changkyun, but he hopes it won't be short. Usually when littles first drop after a while, they tend to stay in their little space longer. At least Hyungwon and Kihyun do.

Changkyun quietly shuffles to watch the cartoon playing, but Jooheon sees that he isn't comfortable. He keeps looking around with big, scared eyes.

Changkyun doesn't trust them to leave him alone.

Hoseok and Hyunwoo sit on the floor with Jooheon, eyeing the little. The room is silent besides the TV and Kihyun's babbling.

After another episode, Kihyun gets bored.

"Want juice," he gently pulls on Minhyuk's arm. "Kyun, go."

Kihyun stands up from the couch and follows Minhyuk to the kitchen, but Changkyun doesn't move. He just pulls his knees up to his chest.

"Oh baby," Jooheon says quietly. "I can go get you juice too. Do you want some?"

Changkyun looks at Jooheon with cautious eyes, but slowly he nods.

"Okay, I will be right back, baby. I'm not going to leave you, okay? Seok and Woo will be right here to keep company."

The little shakes his head, and tears form in the corners of his eyes.

"Min!" Jooheon calls. "Grab another cup for Kyun!"

"Okay!"

Jooheon turns his attention to the little. "Kyun, you're such a good boy, you know?"

Changkyun slowly releases his legs and gets off the couch to settle down on the floor next to Jooheon. He stares at the caregiver expectantly.

"Hey baby boy," Jooheon moves his hand very slowly so he can card his fingers through the little's hair.

It's a slow process, but Changkyun leans into Jooheon's touch.

"Careful, Joo," Hoseok warns. "He still doesn't trust us."

Within seconds, Kihyun runs into the living room with two infant cups and jumps onto the couch. He reaches over and hands the blue cup to Changkyun. Jooheon gently tugs the pacifier out of Changkyun's mouth, allowing him to quietly sip on his juice.

Minhyuk wanders into the living room and sits on the couch next to Kihyun. As if on cue, Hyungwon walks into the living room as well, sleepily rubbing his eyes.

Hyungwon seems to sense the other little. He eyes Changkyun curiously before sitting down on Minhyuk's other side.

"Kyun," Kihyun tells him.

"Kyun," Hyungwon repeats. "Kyun sad?"

Changkyun shakes his head and sets his cup down before opening his mouth. With a soft chuckle, Jooheon slips the pacifier in his mouth.

"Such a good boy, Kyun."

The smallest smile appears on his face, and Jooheon's heart melts.

Hyungwon stands up and drags Kihyun off to their room, babbling about something with Minhyuk following. Jooheon waits for Changkyun to follow, but when he doesn't move, Jooheon speaks up.

"You don't want to play with Kihyunnie and Hyungwonnie?"

Changkyun shakes his head and points at the TV. Jooheon gets the message and sits on the couch, and quickly Changkyun crawls up to sit next to him.

Hoseok bites his lip. "I wonder what happened to make him be like this, ya know?"

"Y-you d-don't think he was sexually abused, do you?" Jooheon asks with wide eyes. "Hoseok, I fucking swear I'll kill them."

"Calm down. We need to fix this the best we can while we can because otherwise he is probably never going to be little again," Hyunwoo tells him calmly. "He seems to trust you the most, so it's all on you, Jooheon."

"Me?!"

"Well, Kihyun can't and the other two would flip out if Minhyuk cared for him, so all we have left is you."

Jooheon shakes his head. "I-I don't know how to earn his trust."

"Do things he likes. He needs you."

Jooheon glances back at the youngest member. For the first time in months, Changkyun seems relaxed. Jooheon wants to help him and wants to punch whoever hurt him.

"Kyun, baby," he calls softly.

Changkyun looks over and blinks.

So cute.

"Come here," Jooheon says more as a suggestion as he raises his arm and motions for Changkyun to come next to him. "It's okay, I'm just going to put my arm around you."

Slowly, the little drags himself to sit next to Jooheon, allowing the older male to wrap an arm around his shoulders. He stays tense before visably relaxing and slumping against Jooheon.

Jooheon feels satisfied. Changkyun does trust him a bit. That's progress; Jooheon can accept that. Sure, he wants to kiss his forehead and cuddle with him, but he can handle this. If this is all Changkyun wants, he is okay.

"Oh thank god," Hoseok says, standing up. "I was so worried that he wouldn't want anything to do with you. Please don't leave his side, Joo."

Together, Hoseok leaves with the leader, leaving Jooheon and Changkyun alone. Jooheon is pretty confident in his skills as a caregiver. Kihyun and Hyungwon always seem to have fun with him anyways. Of course, he isn't sure if he should be Changkyun's caregiver because he isn't an older member.

Regardless, whatever makes Changkyun happy, he will accept it.

By the next episode, Changkyun is back asleep.

He must be exhausted. All he has been is stressed.

He feels terrible that they have been ignoring Changkyun. Kihyun and Hyungwon just require a lot of attention and care, and Changkyun was forgotten. They forgot to remind him to take care of himself; they forgot to remind him that they love him like they love the other two littles. Jooheon forgot to help him with his raps, and he feels awful knowing that all of this built up to Changkyun breaking.

He should have spoken to them properly about it; they should have given him time and attention.

He gently combs his fingers through the little's hair and reminds himself he can't change the past. All they can do is give him a better future.

No one will ever touch you wrong or forget about you ever again, baby, I promise.

He lets his own eyes fall closed.

That was another mistake.

-

Changkyun wakes up with Jooheon's arm around him and the TV quietly playing some cartoon. A object is in his mouth and he is tightly hugging something soft and fluffy.

He panics.

No no no no no no.

He fucked up. No one was supposed to see him in his little space. He wasn't supposed to be little ever again. Why did Jooheon have to be the one to see him like that? Why did any of them have to see him?

A tear falls from his eyes and he pulls the pacifier out of his mouth and throws it across the room. He can't be here. He has to leave; everything is suffocating. He drops the bear onto the floor and stands up.

Sadly, it causes Jooheon to wake up.

Why are you so disgusting, Changkyun? You aren't cute like Kihyun or Hyungwon. You aren't someone they want to take care of. They did it because they had to. Jooheon thinks you're disgusting.

His head is spinning and his chest feels so tight; he can't breathe. He needs to run or hide or something before Jooheon realises what is going on.

"Changkyun, calm down," Jooheon nearly growls, standing up next to him and placing hands on his shoulders. He forces Changkyun to look at him. "Changkyun, hush. Please, breathe."

He didn't even realize he was hyperventilating, but he still shoves Jooheon back by his chest. Quickly, he drops to the ground and brings his knees to his chest. He loudly sobs into his knees, listening to the sound of something shattering.

He doesn't look up because he knows what happened: Jooheon accidentally hit the lamp when Changkyun pushed him. He doesn't want to see Jooheon's angry expression.

Footsteps approach followed by a loud "What the fuck!?"

Kihyun.

"Jooheon, fuck, are you okay?" Kihyun whispers.

"I'm fine. The lamp isn't however."

"Changkyun, what happened?" Kihyun asks sternly. He sounds pissed off.

Changkyun can't bring himself to look up, so he pulls his knees closer and hopes he can disappear. It doesn't work, however, because soon Kihyun is bending down next to him.

"Changkyun," he says. "In this house, you know we don't run away from confrontation. We talk about things otherwise it will show itself when we perform. So, start talking."

Slowly, he lifts his head to see Jooheon cleaning up and while Kihyun is right next to Changkyun.

The youngest bites his lip and hangs his head. "I-I'm sorry."

More footsteps are heard, and this time Changkyun knows who it is by just hearing them walk.

"Babe, is everything okay?" Hyungwon hesitantly asks.

"Jooheon just finished cleaning up porcelain, so I'd say everything isn't okay."

He hears someone walking away before returning; he guesses Jooheon just discarded the last of the lamp.

"What happened?" Kihyun repeats.

"I fell," Jooheon says casually.

Changkyun looks up at him with a shocked expression. He wants to ask why Jooheon is lying, but he decides to keep his mouth closed.

On the other hand, Kihyun seems to know what actually happened. Still, he stands up.

"I think we all need to have a discussion. Hyungwon, baby, go grab Min and the other two."

Please don't.

Kihyun sits on the couch and stares down at Changkyun. "I know you pushed him. I'm not stupid. I would have done it to if-"

"Stop!" Changkyun shouts.

Kihyun falls silent, and soon everyone files into he living room. Hoseok, Hyunwoo, and Minhyuk sit on the couch next to Kihyun. Hyungwon sits on the floor in between Kihyun's legs, head lazily rested on his thigh, and Jooheon sits in a chair.

"Today has been long and it's only two P.M.," Kihyun begins. "But I think we have a few things to talk about. First of all, Changkyun, do you have anything you want to say?"

"You'll never have to take care of me again. I'm sorry," he says softly, barely above a whisper.

"Changkyun, that's not what this is about," Jooheon sighs. "We- No, I love you. I don't know why you think I'd stop loving you just because you are like Hyungwon and Kihyun. I'm always going to be here, Changkyun. We should have shown you more attention. I should have helped you, but I didn't and I just can't change that. All I can do is be here for you now, okay? Will you let me?"

"It's disgusting when I'm little. Kihyun and Hyungwon are cute but I'm-"

"You're adorable," Hoseok interrupts him. "I wish I could have kept you to myself today."

Changkyun feels like his defenses are being picked off one by one. He can't hide from them, not forever anyways.

"You know," Hyungwon begins. "We've been in your position, Changkyun, and everyone else didn't love us any less. Kihyun and I are here for you, and if you need anything or want to talk, don't be afraid to ask."

A small tear falls down his cheek.

"Fuck, I'm sorry. Did I say something?" Hyungwon asks, panicking.

Changkyun shakes his head. "I-I've just never felt so...so loved and wanted. You guys really don't mind?"

"As long as you don't choose Min as your primary caretaker, then really everything will be just fine." Hyunwoo smiles kindly.

"T-thank you," he wipes his eyes. "I'm sorry."

"Don't apologise. We've got your back, Kyun. Like Hyungwon said, if you need anything, we are here."

"Can we talk, alone?" He asks quietly.

The caregivers all nod, and they don't ask questions as they leave the living room.

"Yeah, Kyun?" Hyungwon prompts once the three are alone.

"I have a few...questions."

"Shoot em."

Changkyun blushes. "I've never actually had a real caregiver before. What is it like?"

Kihyun smiles, carding his fingers through his boyfriend's hair. "It's exactly what you think it is. They are there to take care of you and guide you. There are rules of course, like not being alone in the kitchen or no hitting. It all just depends on what you want."

"H-how do you know when you need to drop?"

Hyungwon shrugs. "You just know. It's kinda like instincts. If you're particularly stressed out or you just really want someone to baby you. I usually get the urge to suck on my thumb or to sit in Minhyuk's lap. You'll just know when you feel little, and once the caregivers figure you out, they will pick up on stuff like that."

"Don't worry," Kihyun pats his head. "We've got you, okay?"

Changkyun has never felt happier.

"Okay."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So now im not really sure what to write but i kinda wanna do another changkyun chapter??
> 
> Anyways give me suggestions or something about what you want to see with the littles.  
> Please give me feedback I thrive on it


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the slow update, im trying to get my life together (and its not really working but whatever). I'm so stressed I could die, but writing this makes me feel a bit less stressed, so here we are with chapter 13.  
> Once again, at the end I will let you vote on the next chapter. There are five options this time!

Kihyun is without a doubt the most challenging little out of the three. He misbehaves for attention, and he always asserts his dominance among the other two littles. He likes to talk back, likes to be a brat, but at the end of the day, he is always crawling to Minhyuk for affection.

Since the reveal of two more littles, his behavior has gotten  _significantly_ worse.

It should have been expected. He started off with all the attention, and then he had to share with Hyungwon, and now Changkyun. It's not like Kihyun requires just Minhyuk's attention either. No, he likes the other caregivers' attention and approval as well.

Minhyuk  _should_ have known that it was only a matter of time that Kihyun would act out badly enough that it required punishment.

The issue at hand is that Minhyuk had never considered it, so they never spoke about punishment when Kihyun wasn't little. He doesn't know what is okay and what's not, and the worst thing would be to harm Kihyun or scare him.

Minhyuk currently has a bad feeling that the little is going to act out. He has been  _terribly_ grumpy all morning, going as far as to refuse to eat breakfast even when Hoseok attempted to feed him. He threw a fit, kicking his legs and whimpering until  _someone_ (Hyunwoo. He always has a soft spot for Kihyun) picked him up and held him. Sure, it's not unlike Kihyun to be attached to a caregiver, but he doesn't just skip meals and whine to be held.

Currently he is watching Kihyun hide his face in Hoseok's neck, pacifier between his lips and eyes closed. Minhyuk would be fooled into thinking that he is sleeping, but he sees Kihyun shuffling in an effort to get closer to Hoseok and get his attention.

He is sitting in Hoseok's lap on the floor, straddling him while Hoseok plays with toy cars with Hyungwon. Only one arm is around Kihyun and Hoseok isn't holding him very tightly. Kihyun insisted on sitting in Hoseok's lap as soon as the elder sat down to play with Hyungwon, but he still has yet to participate.

"Kihyun," Minhyuk says finally after watching the little try to get Hoseok's attention for nearly five minutes. "Come here, baby. You can come sit with Daddy."

"No," Kihyun mumbles, voice muffled by his pacifier.

It's  _rare_ that Kihyun doesn't want anything to do with Minhyuk. He  _always_ wants Minhyuk to pay attention to him, so Minhyuk isn't sure if he is supposed to feel offended or worried.

He lets Kihyun get away with it though, watching him snuggle closer to Hoseok and whimper. Hoseok does try to comfort him; he slides his hand up the back of Kihyun's shirt and rubs his back.

Somehow this makes things worse, and he just starts crying.

"Okay," Hoseok says. "Okay, Kihyunnie, you've been grumpy all day, so let's go have a talk, okay? Hyunwoo, can you take my spot?" He tugs the pacifier out of Kihyun's mouth.

He struggles to shuffle Kihyun off of him, but he manages to do so and stands up, pulling the little by the hand. Minhyuk's heart hurts as he watches Hoseok pull Kihyun to the side.

"Now, would you like to tell me why you've been throwing a fit all day?" Hoseok asks kindly.

He reaches out his hand to stroke Kihyun's hair, but his hand is  _slapped_  away. Kihyun is still crying, rubbing his eyes and restlessly shuffling from foot to foot.

"Minhyuk," he says as calmly as he can. "I think this is something you should handle."

It's not like he hurt the elder, but he hit someone.

Minhyuk stands up and takes Hoseok's place in front of Kihyun.

Truthfully, he doesn't know what the fuck he is supposed to do. They never spoke about this, never guessed that the little would do something worthy of deserving something more than scolding, but he definitely deserves  _something_ for hitting someone else.

Minhyuk is slightly terrified. Sure, he had read plenty of things on the internet about littles, but all littles don't take kindly to the same punishments. They react differently, and Minhyuk has no idea how Kihyun will react.

"Kihyun," he says sternly. "Kihyun, why did you hit Hoseok?"

The little just continues to cry, but Minhyuk doesn't let it break him, even if it hurts his heart.

"You know better than to not hit people, Kihyun. You know that good boys don't hit others no matter how angry or upset they are. I'm sorry, but this action has consequences."

He silently hopes he doesn't fuck this up and hurt Kihyun's feelings or something similar.

He continues, "You will be in time out for ten minutes, and I want you to think about what you did wrong and what you will say to Hoseok."

Kihyun is still crying, but it's quieting down a bit.

"This doesn't mean we don't love you, but you know that you can't do whatever you want just because you are upset."

He doesn't feel comfortable putting Kihyun in a room alone, especially when he is so upset, so he carefully guides Kihyun to the far corner.

_It's only ten minutes, Minhyuk. Long enough for him to calm down, but short enough so he doesn't resent me._

"I'll be sitting right there on the couch," he can't help but softly remind Kihyun. "But you should be looking at the wall and thinking."

With a heavy sigh, Minhyuk returns to the couch, all of his focus on Kihyun's small frame, watching his shoulders move as he continues crying. Minhyuk wants nothing more than to kiss his tears away and comfort him, but he can do that once Kihyun learns his lesson.

The ten minutes pass  _very_ slowly, but Kihyun is done crying by the end. Minhyuk is bitting his lip and worried about hurting Kihyun or causing him to slip back, but he still calls Kihyun's name and asks him to come over to the couch.

Kihyun obeys, rubbing his eyes before sitting down next to Minhyuk.

"You know why you were punished, don't you?"

Kihyun nods, sniffling. "Hit Seok."

"You did," Minhyuk confirms. "And what are you going to do?"

Kihyun looks like he is about to cry all over again, but he gets the message and approaches Hoseok, who is sitting back on the floor with Hyungwon and Hyunwoo.

"Kihyunnie sorry," he says with an evident pout. "Didn't mean to."

Hoseok bites his lip to hold back a smile. "I know you didn't mean to, baby. You were just upset, but you aren't allowed to take your emotions out on people. You know we all still love you. I'm not angry, just disappointed because you know better than that, Kihyun."

The little nods, wiping his eyes once again with his hands. "Sorry."

"Why don't you go back to Daddy, okay?"

Kihyun doesn't hesitate to run back to Minhyuk, practically jumping in his lap to straddle him and rest his head on the caregiver's shoulder.

"Kihyunnie won't hit no more."

Minhyuk wraps his arms around the little. "You know I still love you, right?" Minhyuk says, uncertainty obvious in his tone.

Kihyun slowly nods, fingers clutching at Minhyuk's shirt.

It doesn't ease the uncomfortable feeling in Minhyuk's chest. Sure, Kihyun seems okay, but Minhyuk can't help but wonder if he feels unloved or hurt. How will he act when he is big? Will he resent Minhyuk for doing something without his consent?

All the crying seemed to have worn him out because soon he is like jello against Minhyuk and he stops squirming.

Part of Minhyuk wondered if he needed that, needed to know there are boundaries, but at the end of the day he knows he is loved.

"Kihyunnie," Minhyuk calls softly. "I love you so much, baby."

He knows he should put Kihyun down for a nap, but he doesn't have the heart to leave him alone. Instead, he carries the little into their bedroom and climbs in the bed.

Doubts and fears fill his head, and he can't even nap with Kihyun like he so desperately wants to.

The only thing that pulls him out of his depressed mindset is Hyungwon rushing into the room and jumping into the bed, declaring that Minhyuk has to cuddle with him too.

 

-

 

After his nap, Kihyun is slightly less grumpy. Minhyuk manages to get him to eat a half of a sandwich before he is whining and asking to be picked up (and Minhyuk can't say no to the "up! up!" that Kihyun whines).

He even willingly plays with Hyungwon on the floor. Of course, he insists that they play with stuffed animals, and no one can say no to the cute voice Kihyun does for the stuffed shark.

Overrall, the rest of the day goes perfectly, and the littles don't even fight when Minhyuk puts them to bed. Kihyun ends up falling asleep in the middle of watching TV, and he is half asleep for the entirety of their bedtime routine of bathing and brushing teeth. He tucks them into their own beds, putting a pacifier in both of their mouths and ensuring they both have a stuffed animal with them.

Once Minhyuk is sure they are both asleep, he starts his research.

It's a bit weird to look up information about punishments for littles, but Minhyuk sits in the living room and does the research on his phone. He is silently thankful for all the people who offered advice.

He doesn't even realize it's 1 A.M. until he is brought out of his focus by the familiar weight of legs across his lap.

He spent  _so_ much time looking at multiple websites to get more information about littles and how to care for them, and he completely forgot to go to sleep.

Minhyuk glances at the person whose legs are curled up in his lap, and he is a bit surprised to see Kihyun cuddled up to his side but so clearly out of his headspace. Minhyuk can only see him because of the TV, but his hair is messy and his face is puffy. He looks the most beautiful like this, Minhyuk thinks.

"Why are you awake?" Minhyuk says softly, letting his phone fall into his lap and wrapping an arm around Kihyun.

"Bathroom," he mumbles, rubbing his eyes. "Why are you still up?"

"No reason," Minhyuk quickly tries to cover up, wondering if Kihyun has registered everything that happened that day.

"I know that look," Kihyun says slowly. "You're unsure of something, and I have a feeling it has something to do with what happened earlier."

Minhyuk nods, scanning Kihyun's face for any signs of being upset, but he looks at peace.

"I'm sorry I was a bit of a handful. I- I know we didn't talk about it, but you handled it well. I think...I think I needed it, and I feel better now, refreshed, you know?"

Minhyuk can't hold back the fond smile that appears. "You feel better?"

Kihyun hums. "I guess I needed it and that's why I was acting restless. It's been months. I can't believe we never talked about punishments."

"You know, we need to talk about that, and I have an idea. For now though, let's get you back to bed."

It's hard for Minhyuk to get up, but he forces himself up before forcing Kihyun.

"Can we get in Hyungwon's bed? I'm too tired to wake him up and coax him into getting into your bed," Kihyun slurs, sleep nearly taking over him even though he is standing upright.

Minhyun grins. "I would love nothing more."

 

-

 

The next morning, Kihyun ensures that all seven members are seated at the table at breakfast, which is unusual.

He doesn't try to avoid the inevitable conversation.

"About yesterday, I know we have a few things that need to be discussed, just in case Minhyuk isn't around." Kihyun bites his lip, a blush forming on his cheeks. "Punishments  _are_ good for littles, you know. They set boundaries, but punishments shouldn't be too excruciating and aftercare is really important."

Everyone resists the urge to coo over how embarrassed Kihyun is.

Minhyuk rests a hand on Kihyun's thigh. "Basically, we need consent for punishments. Aftercare basically means that afterwards we will remind the littles that we still love them and we aren't angry at them. It's very important that they know what they did wrong."

Changkyun freezes in place, and immediately Hyungwon takes notice.

"Changkyun, you don't-"

He doesn't listen; he stands up and practically runs to slide on his shoes and escape outside. When the door closes, everyone exchanges glances.

"Fuck," Jooheon hisses. "Fuck, what the fuck did someone do to him!? Why aren't you guys chasing him?!"

Hyunwoo lets out a sigh. "Let him go, Jooheon. Let him have time to himself."

Kihyun gulps nervously. "You don't- You don't think that-"

"Let's not assume anything, okay?" Hoseok says softly. "Let's just discuss this as it is, and Changkyun will come to us when he is ready."

Kihyun inhales sharply. "Okay," he says, voice slightly faltering. "I think that time outs are okay."

Everyone eyes Hyungwon waiting for his confirmation.

"Um, yeah. And- and early bedtimes?" His voice is soft. "Just- just don't hit me, okay?"

"Baby, I would never," Minhyuk automatically says. "Why would I ever do such a thing?"

Hoseok's eyes flicker from Kihyun to Hyungwon. "What about loss of electronic devices?"

"Depends on how little they are," Minhyuk says. "I also have another idea. What if we arranged to have a sticker chart?"

Kihyun is immediately interested, perking up with wide eyes. "What?"

"When you do something good, you get a sticker. A punishment alternatively can be the removal of a sticker. After you get so many or so, you can get a new stuffed animal or be able to have an extra treat or something," Minhyuk explains.

"Holy shit," Jooheon blinks, surprised. "That's a really good idea."

Minhyuk glances at Kihyun and Hyungwon, trying to read them and decide if he should push the matter or let it die. Kihyun looks interested, but Hyungwon is biting his lip and staring everywhere but Minhyuk.

"You know," Minhyuk starts. "We don't have to if you don't want to."

Hyungwon stares at his lap, suddenly interested in dragging his fingernails against the fabric of his jeans. "I just-" he struggles to form words. "Nevermind, I don't want to start anything and make someone upset."

"Hey, you know this is a safe zone, Wonnie," Kihyun speaks softly. "No one is going to get upset."

"I-it's just that it's unfair because I'm always good but no one pays attention. Kihyun acts out and only recently got his first punishment, but he always gets told he is a good boy when he does something that isn't even  _that_  great. It's like he gets more attention for being more of a handful, a-a-and it's unfair," he ends his last words by whispering them. "What's the point in having a sticker chart when I'm always good, but no one acknowledges it."

No one speaks for a moment, all trying to form the right words to not hurt either of their feelings. He has a point, Minhyuk thinks. Kihyun  _is_ the one who acts out while Hyungwon rarely does anything but whine. They don't praise him nearly enough because they are too busy focusing on Kihyun and praising him in hopes that maybe he will continue the good behavior.

They have so much to work out before their caregiver and little relationship is actually perfect, and it may never reach that point. They always seem to learn more about them, day by day.

"Y-y-you know I don't mean to! I can't control it! I don't mean to make you feel abandoned or anything and I-"

"This is why I didn't want to say anything, Kihyun. I know you don't mean it. I know no one means to do it, but it happens and I don't know what to do."

"Hey," Hyunwoo speaks softly in an attempt to diffuse the situation because Hyungwon's voice was reaching a dangerously furious tone. "It's our fault, okay? We always look over you because we thought you didn't need the reassurance since you have never acted out. We'll get it worked out, Hyungwon."

Hyungwon stares back down at his lap. "I just don't know if this is a good idea. I mean, there are  _three_ littles now, and adding-"

"Hyungwon, do you trust me as your close friend and boyfriend?" Minhyuk asks.

"Of course."

"My opinion is that this will help both of you feel better, but we don't have to do it if you don't want to."

"We can try it," he finally says shyly.

"That's the spirit. We will even let you pick out your own stickers!"

Hyungwon suddenly seems very interested in the idea, and Minhyuk can't hide the smile that appears on his face.

Sure, they have a lot to figure out, but right now, they are okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Vote for next chapter:  
> 1\. Hyungwon has a nightmare. (Hyungwon centric - mostly finished!)  
> 2\. Littler (in this chapter, it will be Kihyun centric, focusing on how one day he is a bit younger than normal. its hella cute and already mostly written)  
> 3\. Changkyun - the inevitable conversation about his past (after this i will be able to post a chapter about all three littles)  
> 4\. sticker chart in action (if this is posted AFTER the changkyun centric chapter, i will be happy to include him as well!)  
> 5\. Any other suggestion you have to offer! I am always taking requests!
> 
> OKAY finally, I THRIVE on comments and encouragement so please love me lol, no but seriously offer me feedback because I get discouraged if everyone just reads and doesn't encourage me :(


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yeah i did't proofread this

He is trapped.

He is actually trapped.

He can't run like he has been recently, and he can't tell them to fuck off. They  _know_ he needs this, needs it more than  _anything_ , but that doesn't make it any easier when Minhyuk and Jooheon are both on sides of him, holding his arms in place before he can leave the living room.

Changkyun doesn't hold it against them; he can't hold it against them. They are doing what has to be done because he can't keep hiding and he so desperately  _needs_ to drop and feel safe. He is tearing himself apart, breaking down when there is no one to put him back together since he distances himself from the others.

They are doing exactly what Changkyun would have done if he was a caregiver, but he isn't. He is quite the opposite, and they all know it a bit too well.

"We are trying to watch a movie," Minhyuk says softly. "You promised to stop skipping weekly movie night."

It's  _obviously_ a code for "Changkyun, you are going to sit here and watch this stupid children's movie that Kihyun insisted on watching, and you  _will_ enjoy it". Changkyun knows that they let Kihyun chose a movie for the exact reason of coaxing Changkyun into feeling so small.

(Of course, Kihyun has been in little space since they returned from dance practice, so if they watched an action movie like normal, it wouldn't have gone well.)

So, here Changkyun is, fearing for his life practically, even though he knows how badly he needs it.

It's too incredibly easy to feel small when Jooheon pulls out his caregiver voice.

"Kyun, come on. Everyone wants to be together, okay? Can you stay here, for me?"

It makes him feel  _terribly_ small, but he doesn't give in to the small voice begging him to sit down and cry until Jooheon holds him. No, he can't. He can't be little again, can't risk slipping up and telling everyone  _why_ he hates little space.

Sure, when he took care of Kihyun the first time, he did fall into the headspace of being a caregiver, but it was so obviously fake, one that he forced on himself. He told himself that he knew nothing about littles, and he coaxed himself into the headspace of a caregiver. It was temporary.

The problem is Changkyun is so obviously a little, but he hates it. Hates it more than he hates when Kihyun yells at him for not cleaning up the room.

Jooheon, of all people, is babying him, so clearly trying to coax him into little space. Changkyun knows  _all_ the tricks to get littles to be little or stay little.

He shivers, forcing the uncomfortable thought away.

He sits back down, and suddenly both the caregivers sit next to him, Minhyuk's hand rubbing his leg.

Minhyuk  _is_ good at this. In fact, out of everyone, Minhyuk is the best at making the littles feel so small. He knows exactly where to touch, exactly what buttons to push, exactly the words to say.

Changkyun kinda hates him for that.

He thinks he can stay strong, at least he convinces himself of that.

And then Yoo Kihyun is sliding off the couch, onto the floor, and he is looking up at Changkyun with those big eyes that  _everyone_ is weak too, especially little Changkyun.

"Kyun," he whines, picking up his shark plushie and holding it close to his chest. "Pway with Kihyunnie."

His pout is evident, even if the only light is from the TV. Changkyun can see how clearly he wants someone to play with him.

Kihyun hugs Minhyuk's leg, dropping the plushie and resting his head on the caregiver's knee. "Kyun won't pway, Daddy."

Minhyuk simply ruffles his hair, opting not to speak and let the scene play out because its practically impossible to say no to Kihyun, and surely Changkyun will give in too.

"Kyun," he tries again, his voice more desperate. He takes the stuffed shark and places it in Changkyun's lap.

It's a big step because, for one, Kihyun doesn't let  _anyone_ play with his shark if he is around. Secondly, it makes Changkyun's chest feel weird.

And then it happens.

He feels small.

Then, he is climbing on the floor, staring at Kihyun with uncertainty in his eyes. "Kihyunnie," he tries to say, his voice nearly failing him.

Magically, Kihyun ditches Minhyuk's leg and smiles brightly. Changkyun just holds the stuffed animal, eyeing Kihyun to see if he will take it away.

After a few minutes of baby voices and giggling with the shark in between them, Kihyun starts to get tired, and he has always been one to get grumpy when he is sleepy.

Changkyun is a bit disappointed when Minhyuk pulls Kihyun into his lap because he was just starting to get comfortable with someone. He watches the way Kihyun immediately seems to lose the use of his limbs in Minhyuk's arms, almost lifelessly slumped against him.

"You can play in the morning," Minhyuk says softly.

That's when Changkyun begins to panic because that means he is the  _only_ little awake, since Hyungwon was put to bed before the movie. It means he is completely alone with the caregivers, and it's terrifying because there are four of them.

Sure, he  _kinda_ , trusts Jooheon, but he felt so much better with Kihyun awake.

"Hey," Jooheon says softly. "Changkyun, are you sleepy?"

He is, of course he is, but if it means Jooheon will put him in a bed all alone, he most certainly  _be will not_ tell anyone that he is tired.

He shakes his head, hugging the shark plushie close to his chest to offer himself some sort of comfort. Why did Kihyun trust these people!?

He didn't even realize that Hoseok had left, but soon the caregiver is crouched down in front of him, handing him a cup.

"It's milk, baby."

The sippy cup is warm in Changkyun's hands, and truthfully, it automatically soothes him as soon as he drinks it. Hoseok only filled it about 1/4 the way full even though it's a small cup, but Changkyun enjoys every drop of it before he finally looks up at Jooheon with watery eyes.

Exhaustion hits him badly, and he really wants to curl up exactly how Kihyun did and he would love nothing more than to be cuddled; but he doesn't trust these people. Not yet.

"I wouldn't worry about bathing him," Hoseok says softly. "He took a shower when we got home, and I'm sure he wouldn't take it kindly to be touched all over. Just get his teeth brushed and get him into bed."

Jooheon moves as slow as possible, sitting up and moving forward to card his fingers through Changkyun's hair. "It's okay, Kyun. I'm not going to hurt you."

He has always been weak to people playing with his hair, and suddenly he is slumped lifelessly against the couch.

Changkyun isn't sure he 100% sure he trusts Jooheon, but he still follows Jooheon into the bathroom and lets the slightly older male brush his teeth.

Jooheon is kind as he carefully guides Changkyun into the bedroom and pushes him towards the bed.

"Do you want to sleep alone?"

The sudden tight grip on his arm is a good enough answer.

-

Changkyun feels  _so_ much better when he wakes up in Jooheon's arms.

And then he realizes that he dropped  _again._

What he doesn't expect when he climbs out of bed is for Minhyuk to be sitting up in his own bed, watching him.

"You know, I don't know if you're ready, but one day, we need to know what happened. We can't help and we don't know what to avoid if you don't tell us, Changkyun. Everyone is worried sick about you. Kihyun cried earlier this morning because he is so worried and he knows how it feels to be alone and distant. He knows better than anyone else, so if you can confide in anyone, trust Kihyun."

Minhyuk has a point, and even if Changkyun doesn't want to admit it, it is convincing. Wouldn't it feel nice to get everything off of his chest? He spent years holding it in; isn't it time he tells  _someone_?

"C-can you bring everyone to the living room?" He asks quietly.

"Of course."

-

Changkyun is a lot more nervous when all six members are staring at him. Sure, Jooheon's hand is on his thigh in an attempt to soothe him and Kihyun is next to him to silently encourage him, but it doesn't change the fact that he is actually terrified.

When he takes a deep breath, somehow the words just spill out at a rapid pace.

"I was 18, recently graduated high school. I  _knew_ I was a little because on my eighteeth birthday when my brother gave me a pacifier as a joke, I used it that night. I felt - I felt so disgusting. I had heard about the caregiver and little community, how harsh and dangerous it was. Sure, it helped relieve stress, but at what cost.

"I hated playing on my own. No amount of stuffed animals or soft blankets could replace the feeling of being praised or hugged, so I did what a lot of littles do: I looked online for someone. I revealed my location, curious if anyone was willing and in the area.

"After a week of starting the account, I began talking to this..guy. He was older, mid thiries, but I was 18 and stupid and  _so_ desperately in need of attention that - that I immediately asked him to be my caregiver."

He pauses, heart beating loudly in his chest and watching anyone for a sign of disgust. He is only met with comforting stares, encouraging him to continue.

"I lived alone at the time, so I asked him to come over to meet me. A-and at first, it really was easy to drop around him. He started off so kind and sweet, but then if I was too loud or needy, I was, uh, punished. He told me that every caregiver punishes their littles, but I wasn't sure if it was punishment or rape; the line was so blurry to me. I believed him, and I endured it all. I let him treat me like a toy because sometimes he would hold me, and that's all I wanted.

"Really, I thought it was okay up until one day I was feeling especially little, and maybe I whined too much, so he started -" he breathes in, regaining composure. "Punishments became more violent than sex. They came in the forms of slaps or being locked in closets. It took a few occurrences for me to realize it wasn't okay, and I completely slipped out of my headspace.

And then," his voice suddenly cracks, and he falls completely silent, staring at Jooheon's hand on his thigh.

"Hey," Jooheon says softly. "You're okay, baby. If it's too much, you don't have to tell us."

Changkyun shakes his head and reaches to hold Jooheon's hand. "He  _forced_ me to be little, using my little things against me, caressing me in the way that I craved and then he just to broke me down. It's almost instinctive to drop in certain situations, you know, so I could hardly resist.

"It ended when Starship recruited me and noticed the bruises littering my skin. I moved in with a fellow trainee, who I just told I was in an abusive relationship. But- but I want to feel safe with you guys, I just...I just might need another little because I think I'm nervous at the idea of surrendering completely to a caregiver."

It's quiet for a while, and for a minute, Changkyun wonders if he fucked up by telling them everything. Part of him wants to stand up and run away because truly he can't take someone turning their back on him. He would rather run away and never know their reactions instead of being judged because he is fucked up.

"Changkyun," Kihyun finally forms words. "You can't change your past, no one can, and that really sucks. I can't even imagine what it would be like to be abused while in little space. That's terrifying because when we are little, we are supposed to be stress free. I'm sorry he took that away from you, but you know we will always be here. I would beat up that guy if I could because you deserve a caregiver who doesn't treat you like absolute shit.

"And if it takes time for you to be comfortable, that's okay. Hyungwon and I will be here with you through it all. Thank you for telling us."

Sure, Kihyun is most certainly not a caregiver, but he has those mom-like qualities that makes Changkyun  _finally_ feel like he means something, like they actually care. Kihyun's presence is incredibly comforting all together. Changkyun just wants to cry.

Happy tears of course.

"You know, we would never hurt you, ever, no matter how frustrated we are, right?" Minhyuk asks slowly, voice filled with uncertainty. "If you want, we can set boundaries with things you are comfortable with in little space. Do you think that you'd like that?"

"Y-yeah. If that's okay," Changkyun bites his lip, eyes never looking at the caregivers.

Everyone else offers their comforting words, and Changkyun feels like he is actually loved. Really, he feels a lot better until he realizes that he probably needs to make boundaries soon.

"Um, you know, I think that Jooheon and Minhyuk should be the only ones who care for me at first. I-its just that Kihyun and Hyungwon trust Minhyuk so much and Jooheon is the person I'm closest to."

"No big deal," Hoseok smiles.

"A-and please don't touch me unless I touch you first. Of course this can't exactly apply to Kihyun and Hyungwon because they probably won't even understand, but I'm...shy." He pauses, and suddenly a blush forms on his cheek. "Oh, and I would like my own pacifier, cup, and stuffed animal."

Just like that, everyone breaks out into smiles.

"You know," Jooheon says, grinning. "This means my baby gets to choose out his own things now if you're officially going to let us care for you."

It's a surprisingly quick way to his heart, because he has been envious of Hyungwon always choosing pink and yellow items and Kihyun most often choosing red or blue, but he was always given a random color without being asked preference. Sure, color doesn't  _really_ matter, but once he gets his own things, everything will just feel so real.

"Really?" He asks, eyes wide.

"Yeah," Jooheon pats his thigh. "You can choose whatever color you'd like. You just-" he pauses, forming words. "How young are you when you are little? It's just-" he sighs again, struggling to form words without embarrassing Changkyun. "Some littles need diapers, and even though we already have some just in case, it's just something we need to know."

It  _is_ embarrassing, and it  _never_ crossed Changkyun's mind. How old was he? It was hard to pick an age. When he is little, he just  _feels_ small, not a certain age.

"You've done really well so far," Jooheon says softly. "I just don't want to have any accidents. We asked the same things to Kihyun and Hyungwon."

"1, 2, or 3," he whispers. "I-it depends on the day. I've...worn them before. If I don't speak, then I'm probably feeling 1, in which case I'd...need one."

He suddenly feels Kihyun's hand on his leg. "Hey, I know its embarrassing, but you'll feel a lot better. I'm really glad you are opening up to us."

"Alright, why don't we go order you some new things, hm?" Minhyuk smiles softly, and Changkyun  _knows_ he is trying to allow him to drop if he feels like it.

He silently wonders what he did to deserve such good caretakers.

"We can take Kihyun too, but my laptop is in my bedroom," Minhyuk continues. "Or we can wait."

It's surprisingly easy to drop when Minhyuk uses that voice, and Changkyun doesn't try to resist it. If anything, he embraces it.

"Now," he says softly.

"Kihyunnie," Minhyuk stands up. "Baby, do you want to come help Changkyun choose out some things?"

Kihyun eagerly nods, always happy to please, and grabs Changkyun's hand to drag him away.

Before Minhyuk follows, he watches Hoseok tap Hyungwon's knee.

"Are you going to-"

"I'm fine," he says calmly. "I don't feel little."

It'd be perfectly believable if Minhyuk didn't know that every time Kihyun is in little space, so is Hyungwon. They  _always_ are little when the other one is.

He doesn't push it though because he hears Kihyun whining about Minhyuk hurrying up. He forces a smile as he follows behind Jooheon into the bedroom.

He has ordered from the website for littles before, maybe a lot because he loves spoiling his babies. It's pretty easy to find it and open it, especially when the littles are on opposite sides of him, curiously watching the screen.

Jooheon is sitting next to Changkyun, but not touching him like he asked.

The website loads, and Changkyun is immediately focused on all the pretty colors and objects.

He isn't 100% sure what he can ask for. He is nervous that the caregivers will say no.

Minhyuk glances over at Changkyun before lookong through pacifiers to order.

"If you see one you like, tell me, okay?"

"I'll pay, Min," Jooheon smiles. "Let him get whatever he wants. He needs at least two pacifiers because one needs to stay in one of our bags."

"I've got two littles of my own, Jooheon," Minhyuk grins. "You'll be responsible for this baby. Besides, he likes you, you know."

They scroll for a bit before Changkyun points at one.

Jooheon resists the urge to coo when he sees it. The pacifier is lavender colored with a picture of a green dinosaur on it. It's  _adorable._

So, Kihyun likes hamsters and sharks, while apparently Changkyun likes dinosaurs.

For his second pacifier, he chooses a plain pastel green colored one. Minhyuk adds both of them to the online cart and moves on.

Soon, he gets a bit more comfortable, and he chooses a purple cup.

And then Minhyuk gets to the toy section, and Changkyun is visably excited.

"Want! Please!" He says, glancing over at Jooheon and pointing at a dinosaur plushie.

"Anything," Jooheon feels like he might cry because Changkyun is paying attention to him instead of focusing on Minhyuk.

The little flashes a bright smile, the first one Jooheon has seen, and he climbs into Jooheon's lap.

That, surprises him, but Changkyun is glancing over his shoulder to look at Jooheon to make sure he isn't doing anything wrong. When Jooheon smiles, Changkyun turns around to stare at the screen again.

They spend a bit more time looking before Kihyun gets bored and asks Changkyun to play with him.

Jooheon's heart breaks a bit when Changkyun glances up at him to make sure he won't get in trouble for playing with Kihyun.

"Yeah, go play with Kihyunnie, sweetie," he encourages.

Changkyun stands up and follows Kihyun into the living room. He feels a bit lost, but Kihyun forces him to sit down and starts pulling out toys. He likes Kihyun a lot, he decides.

A few minutes into playing with blocks, he decides he also  _kinda_ dislikes Kihyun. As cute as he is, the older little does not hesitate to order him around, and he is incredibly loud. Of course, his orders aren't mean, but he wants Changkyun to play with him how he wants to play. How can Changkyun say no to him?

Kihyun likes to giggle and scream, and he is too excited about  _everythin_ g. He also talks a lot.  _A lot_  and half the time even  _Changkyun_ can't understand what he is saying because he rambles and his lisp makes it hard for Changkyun to process what he is saying.

They only stop playing when Minhyuk and Jooheon enter the room, and suddenly Changkyun feels very self conscious. Kihyun  _actually jumps_ up and rushes over to Minhyuk.

"Up! Up!"

Minhyuk complies, picking Kihyun up. (And his arms are aching but he will do just about anything for the littles). Changkyun feels automatically nervous with Kihyun so far away and ditching him for a caregiver.

"Kyun?"Jooheon calls. "Do you want me to play with you instead?"

The nod he gives is  _so_ hesitant, but still, he confirms it and watches Jooheon sit down in front of him, only the blocks seperating them.

"Play," he says softly. "Joo." He holds out a block for Jooheon to take.

Jooheon almost cries for the second time.

Maybe it'll take a while for Changkyun to get comfortable with him, but the clear need of having a caretaker  _is_ there. That's all Jooheon needs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize that i didn't type more for this chapter, but i want to leave some room for growth in later chapters.  
> See, I'm planning on doing centric chapters for each of the littles bc im sure everyone has a favorite little (and lets be honest, so do i!!), so i want every character to get plenty of story and content!! Of course there will be chapters with all three, and even with centric chapters, the other two will still be around. Especially with Kihyun and Hyungwon centric chapters, the other one will usually be there too


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sensitive chapter? Also idk anything about interviews, sorry if this sucks. Just dont read it if you dont like it lol. This is super long bc its originally 2 separate chapters that i just threw together in one!!

Minhyuk is playing with Kihyun, coloring a picture together in their bedroom, and Jooheon is taking a nap with Changkyun. And Hyungwon-

He is just staring at the TV that isn't even turned on. Both Hoseok  _and_  Hyunwoo are at the gym, which leaves 2 caregivers and  _3_ littles. Kihyun woke up in little space, and Changkyun dropped when Kihyun asked if he wanted to play.

That was a few hours ago, and now Hyungwon is sitting all alone trying to sort out his thoughts.

Hyungwon didn't ask Hoseok and Hyunwoo to stay because they have already done  _so_ much for the littles. He couldn't just ask to take them away from something they enjoy; they relieve stress by going to the gym. Hyungwon doesn't understand the appeal, but he respects it, which is why Hyungwon is alone.

Sure, he could  _probably_ climb in bed with Jooheon and Changkyun or he could sit down and ask to color with Minhyuk and Kihyun, no one would say anything bad about it. Wouldn't that be a bit rude though? If they wanted to pay attention to Hyungwon, they would.

It's been two weeks since the "official" introduction of Changkyun being cared for, so of course the focus is still on him. Hyungwon can't complain because Changkyun deserves love and attention. He went through so much, and he needs them to show him that he is loved. He has to relearn  _how_ to be cared for properly, and it takes a lot of coaxing to get him to do anything without Kihyun attached to him.

Hyungwon understands that. He also understands that Kihyun has been struggling more and more with vocal rehearsal these days since his voice is sounding rough and they won't stop giving him high notes, making it worse. He deserves to relieve stress too.

Which leaves Hyungwon. He is stressed about the company denying him of everything he asks, plus the vocal coach has been angry at him all week, but he feels like his problems aren't anything compared to Kihyun's or Changkyun's.

Besides, even when he is little, they don't offer him much attention anyways. They are too busy cooing over Changkyun or occupying Kihyun so he doesn't make a mess. (Because as the troublemaker of the group, the little has destroyed multiple things on multiple occasions)

He  _could_ be little if he wanted to, but he doesn't see the point in it if he is looked over for always acting good and being quiet.

This happened once before when he first revealed he was a little. He was nervous about dropping because he didn't want to be a burden to anyone. At the time, Jooheon noticed and coaxed him into feeling small, but it is different now. Jooheon is occupied with Changkyun.

At the time, Jooheon reassured him that he wasn't a burden at all, but this is the second time he has been forgotten about or overlooked. It seems to be a reoccurring pattern for him.

It has to mean something.

So, he decides it means that he just isn't wanted as a little anymore.

_It's better like this anyways._

Breathing in, he make a silent vow to himself.

-

"Hey, I love you," Kihyun says softly, lips ghosting over Hyungwon's.

He doesn't  _feel_ loved, but he still nods his head and rests his forehead against Kihyun's. Minhyuk is behind him, arms wrapped around his waist and face buried in his hair. He complains about the fact that the pair have been talking for a few minutes.

"We haven't seen each other much today, so hush," Kihyun tells him. "I felt like we haven't had much time together with the three of us. It's always a combination of pairs at random occasions."

_Its always you two, and then I'm on the outside._

_Hasn't that always been how this worked?_

"I'm trying to sleep," Minhyuk groans as he throws a leg over Hyungwon's legs. It looks incredibly uncomfortable considering they are both lying on their sides, but Minhyuk has always done strange things.

"You can sleep when we are dead," Kihyun jokes, gently knocking his forehead against Hyungwon's again in a teasing manner. "Come on, Hyungwon. I haven't seen you smile all day."

Hyungwon's eyes fall closed. "I'm just tired, Kihyun."

"You sound annoyed," Kihyun only sounds slightly offended. "I'm just trying to love you, baby."

Hyungwon purposefully forces his leg in between Kihyun's, letting Kihyun's other leg rest on top of his own. "Can we just sleep?"

"Please," Minhyuk groans from the other side of Hyungwon.

Kihyun frowns. "Don't make me revoke shower privileges from both of you."

Minhyuk gasps. "You wouldn't dare shower without us!"

"Try me."

Hyungwon feels warm in between the pair, but oddly, his heart feels empty. Pushing the thoughts aside, he forces himself to relax.

He can ignore feelings for a long time.

-

It's nice outside. The wind is blowing, but the sun is shining and warming Hyungwon's skin. He could stay out here forever.

He kinda wants to.

The park bench underneath him is pretty new. The park itself, however, has been around since Hyungwon moved to Seoul. It's usually quiet and peaceful, which is why Hyungwon ditched vocal practice in favor of clearing his head here.

He will most certainly get in trouble later, but that doesn't matter now.

He feels relaxed, and he is glad that for once he is away from the six males he lives with. His phone has been ringing in his pocket practically non-stop for the past 10 minutes, signifying someone trying to reach him no matter how many times it goes to voice mail, but he hasn't bothered to check even the caller ID.

Hyungwon is tired, and, honestly, annoyed. He doesn't even want to go back to the dorm; if he sees Minhyuk's concerned face one more time, he might throw up.

Why does he feel so left out all of a sudden!? He knows it's hard to have two boyfriends, but it's still annoying to feel confused and left out.

Maybe he isn't supposed to be with two people. Maybe Kihyun and Minhyuk would be happier on their own. Maybe he has a soulmate that isn't in his group; maybe he just fell in love for the convenience of it. He feels so confused, but he does know for a fact that he doesn't plan on going home tonight.

He laughs bitterly and wonders if they will even notice if he doesn't come home.

"Hey," a voice from behind interrupts Hyungwon's thoughts. "Are you sure you belong here?"

Hyyngwon glances over his shoulder to see a tall man approaching, probably 40 years old, Hyungwon isn't sure. He looks quite intimidating, wearing a black trench coat and a creepy, comforting smile.

"N-no," Hyungwon barely whispers.

At first, he wonders if this guy even knows that he is an idol, maybe he is a stalker, but then he decides that it's probably just a stranger who is generally concerned for his wellbeing. Besides, older people have always been nice to Hyungwon because of his looks.

He continues, "I just needed to get away from home."

"Sounds like the thing a troubled teen would say," the stranger grins before sitting down on the bench next to Hyungwon. "But you look like you're a bit older than that."

Hyungwon huffs. "Yeah,  _a bit._ I usually don't vent to strangers, but sometimes I feel like I don't belong, you know?  I'm a bit troubled I guess, but mostly I just needed a break from work and people."

"Work?"

"I'm an idol," Hyungwon tells him, immediately regretting it when the guy raises his eyebrow curiously. "We aren't a very popular group or anything though."

"Why not? With a face like yours, shouldn't you be worldwide famous?"

_He is just being nice. He isn't trying to make you uncomfortable. He doesn't know he is overstepping boundaries._

_It's fine._

Hyungwon forces a smile. "Thanks. We will get there one day hopefully."

The stranger eyes Hyungwon head to toe. "If you are an idol, then where is the security guards or manager? Isn't it dangerous to be alone? I'd hate to see someone hurt you."

The idol suddenly feels his heart beat faster in his chest. Does this guy know how uncomfortable he is making Hyungwon feel?! Hyungwon's breathing is starting to become uneven, thinking of all the things that  _could_ happen.

He really wants to get away from here.

"I-I think I should get going," he ignores the question and stands up. "It's been nice talking with you. Than-"

There's a hand gripping his arm to keep him from running away. It's a  _tight_ grip, actually hurting him.

"Why don't I take you home? I'm sure your group would hate it if something happened to you on your way home, Hyungwon."

Did he ever give this guy his name?

Hyungwon feels like crying. He is positive he has never felt so terrified in his entire life. The grip on his arm is entirely threatening, making him almost weak to the touch.

"I-I'm okay," he tries to pull his arm away, but the man doesn't let go. "I'll be fine on my own."

"Come on, let me take you home."

The stranger stands up, and Hyungwon's brain  _finally_ starts working. He lifts his foot to kick the guy in the crotch before pulling his hand away. It temporarily stuns the guys, but soon he is slapping Hyungwon's cheek harshly. He repeats the action two more times before Hyungwon finally returns to his senses.

Hyungwon runs as fast as he can in a random direction. Tears are streaming down his face, but he has to get away. He hears the clear sound of the guy chasing him, cursing at him, but he doesn't stop moving. He can't.

"Get back here, bitch!"

Hyungwon  _prays_ he can out run this guy because he is fucked if he can't. He immediately makes a run for the forest, hoping that he can lose trace of the stranger by the trees blocking his vision.

He doesn't turn around out of pure fear; if he looks back, he thinks his legs will stop working.

So he runs, and runs, and runs until his legs buckle underneath him, causing him to fall into his knees. His chest is moving up and down as he struggles to breathe.

Slowly, he raises his hand to the cheek that was slapped. It will probably form a bruise, but that's the least of Hyungwon's worries. They have an interview tomorrow, but it could easily be covered up with makeup. More importantly, he is in the middle of the forest and he is lost.

Glancing around him, he is relieved to see he is all alone.

Until it hits him that he is all alone, and he is  _terrified._

_Where did I come from again?_

He wipes away the tears off his cheek and stands up with shaky legs. The sun starting to set, and the last thing he wants is to be lost in the dark and have to call one of the members to find him.

There's no way in hell that he is telling them that he was almost kidnapped or raped. The last thing they need is to have another issue to worry about. He can just tell them he skipped vocal practice and then he fell when he was walking in the forest. That's close enough to the truth.

He gathers all the courage he has before walking in the direction that looks the most familiar.

It takes him some time before he is finally back in the park by some miracle. He doesn't stop to rest no matter how tired he is; Hyungwon just begins to walk towards the dorm, ignoring the phone that is still ringing.

-

"Where were you!? The manager was worried sick!" Hoseok scolds as soon as he opens the dorm door. His voice suddenly softens. "Why is your cheek red and swollen?"

"I slipped and fell. I'm sorry I skipped vocal practice. I just needed a break."

Hoseok rolls his eyes, and the anger returns in his voice. "You just skipped practice and ran away like a teenager!? Hyungwon, this is your career! You can't just run away from it."

Hyungwon should yell, tell him everything that happened and how alone he feels, but the words die in his throat. What would be the point anyways?

"Yeah. I'm sorry," he pushes past Hoseok to take off his shoes and enter the living room.

He glances at the TV playing some cartoon, and he loses his appetite.

"I'm gonna head to bed," he says softly to no one in particular.

Hyungwon drags himself to his bedroom and grabs clothes before heading into the bathroom.

When he sees himself in the mirror, his stomach flips. His cheek  _is_ swollen. By the morning it will probably turn purple. Shaking his head at the thought, he starts the water.

He is just going to fall face first into Minhyuk's bed the second he stops feeling disgusting as he remembers the guy's hands on him.

-

Minhyuk wakes up to a sharp pain in his side.

_The fuck?_

He looks around to see Kihyun no where in sight, but Hyungwon is thrashing next to him. Quickly, he reaches over to shake Hyungwon awake.

"Hyungwon. It's me, Minhyuk."

Hyungwon's eyes open, and tears immediately pour out of them. He looks so scared, so sad. Minhyuk quietly pulls up Hyungwon's shirt that fell from his shoulder to cover the skin. The spot on his cheek is turning purple.

The memories of last night come back to him. Hyungwon disappeared for hours, and when he came home, he just slept in Minhyuk's bed. Kihyun had been more than willing to climb in bed with him and dragging Minhyuk with him. Kihyun told him that Hyungwon said that he had fallen down, and that's why his face is swollen.

Staring at the bruise forming, he isn't sure if he believes the story.

Based on the room, Minhyuk guesses it's early in the morning. It's late enough that Kihyun is awake and the sun is shining through, but it's early enough that Kihyun is still letting them sleep.

His boyfriend rubs his eyes and whimpers softly. Minhyuk is hesitant to baby him; they have an interview at 12, and the last thing they need is for Hyungwon to be little.

They have never ran into a problem where one of the littles stayed in their little space in a public place. Usually, Minhyuk can coax them out of it, but it has always been difficult for Hyungwon to leave his headspace. Kihyun is rather easy to coax back, but Hyungwon, well, prefers throwing a fit when Minhyuk tries.

It's going to be one of  _those_  days.

Hyungwon sobs, and Minhyuk decides he can't just sit here and watch his baby suffer. He sits up and positions Hyungwon in his lap so that he is straddling the elder while Minhyuk rubs his back.

"Shh, shhh, baby, you're okay," Minhyuk begins. "You're okay, no one is gonna hurt you while you're in my arms, hm?"

It doesn't ease him very much; Hyungwon is trembling and sobbing against Minhyuk's shoulder, his arms wrapped around Minhyuk's neck like he is scared that the elder will leave.

The more he thinks about it, he realizes that he can't exactly recall the last time Hyungwon was little. Guilt fills him as he stares at the trembling frame in his arms. Why didn't they notice!?

"Shh," Minhyuk slips his hand up Hyungwon's shirt and gently touches his skin. "I'm right here. Why are you crying?"

"Scary."

_Oh. He had a nightmare._

"Hyungwon, baby," he gently pulls Hyungwon's head up as he reaches for the pacifier on the side table.

It's a bad idea; it's a bad way to comfort him when they have to be idols in a few hours, but Minhyuk feels like he is out of options. He doesn't hesitate to guide the pacifier to Hyungwon's lips and then press the younger's head back against his shoulder.

His cries magically die down into whimpers, and Minhyuk is  _so_ thankful that it didn't get too out of control.

Minhyuk feels so guilty. He wishes they didn't have an interview because all he wants to do is baby Hyungwon. He wonders if its the caregivers' fault for ignoring him.

He pushes the thought away because feeling guilty won't help him take care of Hyungwon. Besides, he is also worried about getting Hyungwon back to functioning.

"That's my good boy, yeah?" Minhyuk quietly says. "Daddy won't let anyone or anything get you."

Apparently the madness was enough to wake Jooheon and Changkyun from Jooheon's bed. They sit up, confused, and watch Hyungwon carefully.

"He okay?" Jooheon slurs.

"Nightmare," Minhyuk says softly. "Made him drop into little space or something, but it's about time to get up now anyways, huh?"

"It's too early."

Struggling a bit, Minhyuk stands up with Hyungwon still attached to him and begins walking to the kitchen. There, he finds Kihyun eating cereal with Hoseok. The second Minhyuk enters the room, they fall silent.

"He's, uh, little right now," Minhyuk tells them as he sits down in the chair across from Kihyun.

"Oh," is all Kihyun says before returning to his cereal.

"So, are you just going to let him cling to you, or...?" Hoseok trails off.

Minhyuk shrugs. "I'm going to let him attempt to relax after breakfast, and then around 10:30, I'll coax him back. Something really scared him in his nightmare."

"Think he is gonna eat?" Hoseok asks, already standing up to fill a sippy cup with apple juice.

"I doubt it. Ki, babe, could you make me a bowl of cereal?"

Kihyun smiles and stands up to do as he asks. When he finally pours the milk, he sets the bowl in front of Minhyuk followed by the sippy cup before kissing his eldest boyfriend.

"I love you," Kihyun mumbles before turning to Hyungwon and kissing the top of his head. "I love you too, baby."

Minhyuk watches him leave before looking at his cereal. After a few bites, he manages to get Hyungwon off of his shoulder long enough to accept some cereal. Together, they finish off the bowl.

Standing up, he holds Hyungwon close to him and walks into the living room. Kihyun makes space for them between himself and Hyunwoo, and Minhyuk smiles gratefully as he sits down.

Kihyun reaches over and cards his fingers through the younger's hair. "I hope he feels better soon."

"Give him time. I think it was just a scare."

Minhyuk glances at the clock; they have an hour before their manager will be here to take them to the interview, which means in thirty minutes, Hyungwon can't be little anymore. He is nervous about coaxing him back, especially when he is this fragile and attached.

Minhyuk temporarily thinks about taking his pacifier out, but he ditches the idea; Hyungwon can rest for now.

The younger simply lies against him limply, fingers clutching the front of Minhyuk's t-shirt. He stays still through an entire episode of a drama before Hoseok finally pushes Minhyuk a bit, urging him to coax Hyungwon back.

He is gentle as he pulls Hyungwon to sit up correctly instead of slumped on him. "Hyungwon, it's time to get up."

The second thing he does is pulls out Hyungwon's pacifier. Except, it doesn't go over very well; he immediately starts crying without it.

This is bad.

Hyungwon is  _deep_ into little space;  _too deep._

"Hyungwon, hey, I need you to be a big boy now, okay? We have an interview soon."

The younger starts squirming and crying louder, hands never releasing Minhyuk's shirt.

"Hyungwon," he says more sternly, using the voice that he uses only when the littles are in trouble.

Oddly enough, it still doesn't get him to stop crying, and Minhyuk feels like pulling at his own hair. He is at a loss of what to do. Usually, the little is calm and well behaved.

"Min, just give it to him," Kihyun says softly. "Please. He is so upset. Whatever he had a nightmare about must have really scared him."

He shouldn't give his pacifier back because for one, he is supposed to be out of little space, and secondly, it teaches him that crying gets him what he wants. Still, Minhyuk can't bare to listen to the crying much longer, so he slips the small item in between the little's lips.

Hyungwon immediately starts sucking, and his shoulders lose tension. He leans forward, settling his head back on Minhyuk's shoulder.

He doesn't have the heart in him to tell Hyungwon to get off; all his caregiver instincts are screaming at him to hold the little close.

"Now what?" Jooheon sighs. "We have an interview, and I don't think Korea would take it lightly if Hyungwon sat in your lap the entire time."

"All we can do is hope for the best. I'm not telling him that he can't attach himself to me right now. Will someone go grab his shoes and socks? When we arrive they will redo our hair, makeup, and outfits anyways."

Minhyuk isn't sure who, but someone leaves. He just focuses on rubbing Hyungwon's back and calming him down.

His hopes are to convince Hyungwon to sit through ths interview and not speak. Minhyuk will sit beside him with a hand on his leg because people do it causally all the time.  _Maybe_ Hyungwon will sit still with the promise of ice cream on the way home (although after the interview he will probably be too tired for ice cream. Minhyuk hopes that he will fall asleep as soon as he gets in the car).

Eventually Jooheon walks into the living room with Hyungwon's socks and shoes. He crouches down on the floor. "Hyungwon, sweetie, can you be a good boy and turn around for me?"

Surprisingly, the little turns around and presses his back against Minhyuk's chest, feet touching the floor. Jooheon carefully starts on his left foot, easing a sock on it. Hyungwon doesn't even protest when he moves to his right foot; he just relaxed against Minhyuk, eyes struggling to stay open.

Jooheon finally puts shoes on him, smiling gently. "Good thing he slept in shorts last night. He can just change when he gets there. I don't think he would take it kindly if we tried to change him now."

Minhyuk combs Hyungwon's hair down with his fingers. "It'll be easier when we get to the place, I hope. Also, I'm sure starship will pay the interviewer not to release it if he completely melts down." He changes his tone. "Hyungwon, baby, can you go to Joo or Seok for a bit while Daddy gets dressed?"

He only suggests them because both of them are fully dressed with shoes, so Hyungwon can stay with them until everyone is ready to leave. He needs consistency and a quiet environment.

"Hyungwonnie," Hoseok speaks sweetly. "You can cuddle with Daddy once we are in the car."

Hoseok slowly extends his arms, and Hyungwon complies by wrapping his arms around Hoseok's neck and legs around his waist, allowing Hoseok to hold him close. The elder smiles as he settles down in a chair.

"Go, Min."

Minhyuk quickly stands up and rushes into the bedroom; their manager could be there any minute. He pulls on jeans and puts a hoodie over his shirt. He struggles with his socks and shoes, nearly falling due to rushing.

He returns to the living room to see Hoseok in the same position. Looking around, he finds that everyone is finishing getting ready.

Curiously, Minhyuk approaches Hyungwon and walks around the chair to see the little's face. Surprisingly, his eyes are open but his expression is dull. The pacifier is still securely in his mouth, but other than sucking on it, he doesn't move.

Minhyuk isn't sure how the hell he is going to coax Hyungwon into being on his own.

-

They arrive at the interview location right at noon. Hyungwon bites his lip when Minhyuk urges him out of the van, but he doesn't start crying even though Minhyuk removed his pacifier earlier in the van. He stumbles out, looking clueless with big, frightened eyes.

Minhyuk places a hand on his lower back, guiding the younger to the building and into the dressing room.

"Hyungwon, they are just going to fix you up, okay?" Minhyuk says softly, fingers carding through the other's hair. "I'm going to go and-"

"No!" Hyungwon cries, immediately trembling and tears began forming.

"Okay, okay," Minhyuk nervously glances around. "I'll be right with you through it all, okay? Let's go get you changed."

Luckily the changing room is different from where they do their makeup, so Minhyuk grabs their clothes and starts heading towards the small room.

The inside is at least half the size of the dressing room. The light is thankfully bright and there is a large mirror on one wall.

Minhyuk closes the door and locks it. "Okay, let's play a game, hm? We have to be  _really_ quiet for the next hour, and if you are, we can get some ice cream. Does that sound like fun?"

Immediately Hyungwon shakes his head.

"I'll be right here, baby. You just need to be super quiet and follow my lead. It's like that time we played dress-up, yeah? Remember when Kihyunnie put stuff on your face? It's just like that."

Minhyuk coos over the way he pouts.

He begins undressing the little. Hyungwon is too little to actually take off his own clothes, clearly struggling even with Minhyuk's help. It's surpringly easy to redress him in the pair of black skinny jeans and pastel blue buttoned up shirt.

Minhyuk quickly changes his own clothes before dragging Hyungwon back out and gently pushing him into a chair in front of the stylist.

He doesn't throw a fit, but he watches very carefully when Minhyuk sits down in the chair next to him.

The interview is going to be the longest fifteen minutes of Minhyuk's life.

A stylist quickly occupies herself with doing Hyungwon's makeup. She doesn't have an issue until she starts doing eyeshadow and the little starts to squirm in his chair, whining softly.

"Hyungwon, you have to sit still, you know this," she smiles regardless of the slight frustration she feels.

Minhyuk silently decides he is going to slip her money before he leaves.

"Hyungwon, come on, stay still," Minhyuk whispers, leaning over to place a hand on his thigh and squeeze.

Minhyuk pulls his chair to be closer to Hyungwon's so that he can keep a hand on him, and then he finally lets the stylist in front of him return to working on him. He closes his eyes and focuses on his hand gently rubbing the little's leg.

Hyungwon has always goes limp whenever Minhyuk rubs him for some reason, and now is no different. Minhyuk feels him untense, and he guesses the other stylist continues to work on Hyungwon.

They finish getting ready without any issues, and once they leave the stylists' care, Minhyuk does sneak Hyungwon's stylist money. He throws her a soft smile as an apology.

.

Hyungwon starts getting restless minutes before the interview begins. Minhyuk isn't sure what exactly is the issue because they just went to the bathroom a few minutes ago (Hyungwon made Minhyuk stay with him the whole time. Besides, the little can't even wash his own hands anyways.), so it's not that. They are both connected to microphones clipped to their shirts currently, and Minhyuk doesn't want him to squirm enough that the cords start to get tangled because that would stress him out further.

Currently, they are sitting side by side on the couch, waiting patiently for their manager to tell them that it's all clear for them to enter the room that the interview is taking place in. Hoseok is pressed against Hyungwon's other side, but the little has no interest in him. Instead, he is nervously sqiurming even when Minhyuk rubs his hand against his thigh in circles.

"Hyungwon, baby, in twenty minutes we will be on our way home, okay? Then you can babble all you want and we can go home and play with whatever you want. You just need to be good and quiet." He whispers, only speaking because the microphones are currently turned off.

The little finally looks him in the eyes, and Minhyuk  _knows_ that look. It's the look that he recieves when Hyungwon wants to get in his lap, but he is too scared to do it without asking. It's him silently asking for permission. Except, he can't do that here; not with all the people around.

Minhyuk silently wonders what did he have a nightmare about that made him so...clingy. Normally, yes, he is clingy, but he lets Minhyuk leave and will occupy himself if he has to for a while.

Before Minhyuk has a chance to offer more comforting words, Hyunwoo is urging them to get up because it's time to start.

Hyunwoo scans over Hyungwon one last time. "If he freaks out, starship can pay for the removal of the video, Min. Don't stress yourself or him too much."

Minhyuk nods, standing up and helping Hyungwon up.

The interview room is plain, mainly empty besides seven chairs with another larger chair next to them. The member file in and settle down, Hyungwon shyly sitting next to Minhyuk and grabbing his hand to force it on his own leg.

Everyone turns the mircrophones on, and the interviewer, a woman probably in her mid-twenties, sits down in the chair and smiles.

The cameras start rolling, and they introduce themselves.

Minhyuk has to keep himself from shaking because truly he is terrified. It's not Hyungwon's fault that he can't get out of little space, but Minhyuk will blame himself if Hyungwon does something notably little. The littles trust him to protect them at all costs; he can't fail them now. He has to keep himself and Hyungwon calm.

The questions come, and they are surprisingly easy. They aren't addressed at a particular member, just questions about the recent comeback concept, an explanation on the mv, and questions about what to expect at the upcoming world tour.

Hyunwoo urges the members to answer questions by eyeing them and softly calling their name, purposefully avoiding Hyungwon. If the fans get worried, they can play it off as Hyungwon being sick.

Minhyuk stumbles through an answer about how the world tour is exciting to them and how happy they are to be able to see more monbebes. He struggles to keep a smile and manage his usual upbeat attitude that the fans always see.

It's in the last question when Hyungwon starts to get  _bored._ Hoseok is giving a brief story about filming their music video and how exciting it was to try a new concept, and Hyungwon is just bored. Minhyuk can see it in the way he looks around (Minhyuk is thankful they aren't around a table because he is positive that the little would try to shove things in his mouth, the way he does at home) and tries to watch for anything interesting.

Minhyuk digs his fingernails into his thigh, purposefully waiting for the look of question he receives. He flashes Hyungwon an expression, the one that tells him to behave or there might be consequences. It's an empty threat, of course, because Hyungwon can't help it if he gets bored and has a meltdown.

Hoseok's story ends up in Hyunwoo telling a story about Kihyun being clumsy during filming. It doesn't last long, and its mostly to get people to laugh.

 _Finally,_ the interviewer tells them it's over. Their manager approaches them.

"Okay, change clothes. You can head home. Remember you have practice at 6 A.M."

Minhyuk is the first to get up, quickly grabbing Hyungwon's hand and dragging him back into the dressing room. Hyungwon complies when Minhyuk changes him, even tries to help Minhyuk get dressed.

_He is feeling better._

Minhyuk hands him a makeup wipe on their way out of the changing room to occupy him while he cleans the makeup off of his own face. Hyungwon giggles and struggles to get any of it off, but it gives Minhyuk enough time to wipe his own face before he cups Hyungwon's face and cleans off his makeup.

The little is  _very_ unhappy when Minhyuk puts a mask over his nose and mouth. He pouts, but doesn't cause a scene. Minhyuk put it on him mostly so he doesn't start trying to stuff things in his mouth in the dressing rooms (there are so many things that he could easily mistake for toys) or suck on his thumb.

Eventually, everything calms down around them, and finally they are ready to leave.

As soon as they get in the van, Hyungwon slumps against Minhyuk, whining softly until Minhyuk kisses his forehead.

"Get some sleep, baby. We can play when we get home."

-

They don't get home until 5:00 P.M.

The second the arrive back at the dorm, Hyungwon is clinging to Minhyuk's arm. He never actually fell asleep in the car, especially after Minhyuk fed him ice cream.

He doesn't even bother changing. He slips off his shoes and whines, pulling onto Minhyuk's shirt until he picks the little up.

Minhyuk settles down on the couch, and immediately the other caregivers are asking him questions.

"Is he okay? Do you think they noticed?" Hoseok asks.

Minhyuk shrugs. "He seems okay, just scared of being alone. I don't think anyone noticed besides the stylist that was working on him."

Hyungwon is in his usual position with his knees on either side of Minhyuk's hips and his head pressed against Minhyuk's shoulder. It looks incredibly uncomfortable, but somehow he most often sits like that when he is in someone's lap.

"Grab his pacifier for me. It was in the van, but I think Kihyun took it out."

Jooheon nods. "I'll get it and also ask Kihyun to feed us because I'm starving."

Minhyuk watches him leave before glancing up at Hyunwoo and Hoseok. "I'm really sorry about today."

"It's no one's fault, Min," Hyunwoo leans down slightly to comb Hyungwon's fluffy hair with his fingers. "Besides, you handled it well."

He feels the familiar feeling of Hyungwon starting to bite on his shirt, saliva slightly coating it. On the bright side, it means he is getting ready to settle down for a nap.

"He is really cute when he is clingy like this," Minhyuk smiles to himself.

"I'm a bit jealous that we didn't get to play with him," Hoseok pouts.

"I'm sure he will still be little when he wakes up, so we can all play with him then. I'm sure he will appreciate the attention. He probably had a nightmare about being alone."

Jooheon returns with the pink pacifier followed by Kihyun flashing them an unreadable glance before heading to the kitchen.

"Here, hand it to me before he drenches my shirt in slobber," Minhyuk laughs, extending his hand.

Jooheon hands it to him, and Minhyuk pulls Hyungwon's head up enough to give him the pacifier.

The little shuffles a bit before settling down. Easily, his breaths become even and quiet.

"Now comes the challenge of getting through the rest of the day," Hoseok flashes him a bright smile.

-

Hyungwon begins to wake up when Minhyuk sits him on his own chair in front of a plate of food. He frowns at the cut up pieces of chicken and glances at Minhyuk, who sits down next to him. On Hyungwon's other side is Hoseok urging him to eat. Kihyun on the other side of the table, and he is opening his mouth as Hyunwoo feeds him.

Minhyuk pulls the pacifier out of Hyungwon's mouth and places it on the table.

The little sleepily rubs his eyes with closed fists and pouts, watching the others begin to eat around him. Apparently he is too little to eat on his own because he simply opens his mouth and stares at Minhyuk.

"I spoil you too much," Minhyuk laughs, taking a piece of chicken off of Hyungwon's plate and feeding it to him.

On the bright side, it doesn't make a mess, so all Minhyuk has to do is wipe off his face when he is done eating instead of having to clean his hands too, which always proves to be a challenge.

When Minhyuk wipes off his mouth, Hyungwon runs into the living room in search of toys. Hoseok follows curiously, watching the little settle down in front of the small box of toys and take a toy car out.

And then he shoves it in his mouth.

"Minhyuk! Hyungwon is stuffing things in his mouth!"

Holding back a laugh, Minhyuk continues cleaning Kihyun's face. The little is pouting, but grease from the chicken is still on his mouth (and somehow on his cheek!? How did Hyunwoo manage to get it on him so much?!). "Give me a second. I'm not done with Ki."

After deciding that Kihyun is clean enough, he walks in the living room to see, yes, Hyungwon with half of the toy car in his mouth, looking completely clueless as to why Hoseok is freaking out. Kihyun is soon following him and collapsing on the floor next to Hyungwon to take a toy car and shove it in his own mouth, giggling when Hoseok practically screams.

"Why don't we play with something they can't put in their mouths?" Minhyuk suggests, crouching down and pulling the car out of  _both_ the littles' mouths. "You're very cute, but that doesn't mean you can eat toys."

"Well, that means we can't color or play with any of the small toys. All we have left is stuffed animals that fans gave us."

That's how Minhyuk finds himself sitting on the floor with a stuffed owl in the other. He isn't 100% sure what he is doing, but Hyungwon is holding a stuffed frog and giggling in between making noises, so at least he is enjoying himself. Kihyun is next to Minhyuk, talking rapidly as always and waving around his shark plushie.

Hoseok and Hyunwoo are also on the floor. Hoseok's lap is currently occupied by Hyungwon sitting in it. For some reason, in their strange stuffed animal scenario, Hyunwoo is holding a small stuffed bear that is apparently evil, at least that's all Minhyuk understands from the littles' noises.

Hyungwon takes the frog and crashes it into the bear, giggling when Hyunwoo overreacts and makes it fall over.

"Hyungwonnie, you won!" Hoseok cheers, clueless as the rest of them as to what is going on.

They have a lot of fun, filled with all five of them laughing, until Hyungwon  _finally_ starts to get grumpy around 8:00.

He just starts crying out of no where, and Minhyuk guesses it's from pure exhaustion.

"Alrighty, well, if anyone is interested, I'm going to get him in the bath and then put him in bed." Minhyuk drops the owl and leaves the room, returning with the pacifier and putting it in the little's mouth to quiet him. "Also, I'm incredibly exhausted, so I'll probably sleep as well. Who wants to keep playing with Ki?"

"We can put him to bed later, Minhyuk," Hoseok laughs as he watches Kihyun grin and hit his shark plushie against the owl.

"You sure?"

"He doesn't look even close to willing to go to sleep right now. We can give him a bath, too. Who knows, maybe Jooheon can bathe both him and Changkyun tonight."

With a smile, Minhyuk kissss Kihyun's forehead. "I love you, baby boy."

Kihyun glances up at him with that stupid grin that makes Minhyuk's heart speed up. "Loves too!"

Holding in a laugh, Minhyuk takes Hyungwon's hand and leads him into the bedroom. He grabs clothes for both of them before dragging the little in the bathroom.

It's surprisingly easy to coax Hyungwon into getting in the bath with him. He doesn't complain when Minhyuk asks him to sit in between the elder's legs so they can both fit. (There was no way Minhyuk was going to try and coax him into standing up in the shower for fifteen minutes.)

Hyungwon is patient (mostly because he fell asleep) as Minhyuk washes them. He doesn't throw a fit until Minhyuk gets out and dries himself before changing first.

"I know, baby," he says softly, listening to Hyungwon's whimpering.

Minhyuk gently pulls him out before drying and dressing him. Hyungwon attempts to brush his own teeth for once, miserably failing until Minhyuk steps in and helps.

By the time they are in bed, Hyungwon is nearly asleep. Minhyuk just laughs and rubs his back until he falls asleep completely.

It was a good day.

-

He feels so warm squished between Kihyun and Minhyuk. He almost doesn't want to get up, but it's 5 A.M. and practice starts at 6. Starship already kinda hates him, so no need to make it worse.

"Ki," he mumbles, pushing the said male.

Arms from behind tighten their grip. "Stop moving, Won."

Kihyun sits up and rubs his eyes. "What is it, baby?" A shaky hand reaches out to pet his hair.

"We have to get up, a-and I don't want to be alone. Please don't leave me alone."

"Okay," he begins cautiously, "why don't we have a quick discussion because clearly something is wrong, and then we can take a shower together since we haven't had much time for the three of us?" Kihyun seems already wide awake. "Come on, Min."

"I can talk and still cuddle with the baby."

Hyungwon's heart is beating rapidly in his chest, but now is the only time he can express his concerns.

_They love you, Hyungwon. Just tell them._

"I've been sorta forgotten about since Changkyun has joined as an official little, which is fine, but I was really upset about it. I-I didn't want to say anything to upset anyone, so the other day I went to the park. There, I met-" he chokes himself off, struggling to speak without crying. "I met this guy who was happy to listen to me, but then he already knew my name. I panicked and tried t-to escape, but he ended up slapping me before I could run away. I came home and lied about it. T-that night I had a nightmare about...him...Please just don't leave me alone."

Kihyun moves his hand to wipe away Hyungwon's tears, but Minhyuk is the one who speaks.

"We will get better over time. I'm sorry we forgot about you. I wish I could find the guy and beat his ass. I feel so guilty that we practically caused all this. If something is bothering you, speak up. We can't read your mind, Hyungwon. Nothing will ever happen to you while we are around though, okay? I won't let anything hurt my baby."

Hyungwon lets himself relax in Minhyuk's embrace and presses his face against Kihyun's hand. "We will figure it out over time," he says so softly. "Just promise me we won't ever stop trying to make this work."

"I think I can speak for both of us," Kihyun whispers. "I don't want to do this or anything without you. There are three of us, not two. I won't ever give up on this, not even if the whole world learns that I love you. I'd do anything for you."

"Just don't give up on us either. We are trying our hardest. Be open and honest," Minhyuk kisses the back of his head.

"We love you as much as we love each other." Kihyun leans down to press his lips against Hyungwon's.

Hyungwon feels a bit more complete.

Yeah, he definitely loves Minhyuk and Kihyun more than he will ever love anyone else.

And he is pretty sure they feel the same way. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please continue giving me suggestions bc I'm running out of ideas? I only have 4 more chapters planned so i really really just need ideas otherwise ill have to end this thx :)  
> Please love and support me


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here's a tiny chapter.  
> I do appreciate all the votes. I got the impression that you guys wanted to see more of Hyungwon and Changkyun?
> 
> Its super short I'm sorry

If little Changkyun had to choose a best friend, Jooheon would confidently say that it is Kihyun. The two are attached because Changkyun is always too scared. Kihyun tends to take up the "big protective brother role", but as days have gone on, Kihyun's little age has been consisently younger.

If Jooheon is honest, Kihyun has the youngest little age. He rarely has to wear diapers, but he doesn't want to do anything without a caregiver by his side. More frequently than not, he becomes the most clingy one. There have been many circumstances where he refused to play with anyone in favor of sitting in one of the caregivers' laps.

It makes doing any activities hard because it's impossible to do anything with Kihyun attached and his head on one of their shoulder's. Minhyuk and Hoseok are his favorites, so he most frequently clings to them. Jooheon has noticed that he doesn't get bored as easily when he is younger. If he had to guess, the little is nearly constantly at an age between 1 and 2.

Jooheon is sure its probably a phase brought on by the stress of the world tour, but it does change situations in the house.

For one, Kihyun cannot be left alone. A week ago Minhyuk was home alone with him and left him alone in the bedroom so he could bathe Hyungwon, but he ended up finding Kihyun touching the burner of the stove where Minhyuk recently made tea. His hand was burned and there were plenty of tears.

Secondly, the one that affects Jooheon the most, Kihyun doesn't want to have anything to do with Changkyun anymore. He sometimes will play with Hyungwon, but most frequently since they don't get too much time in little space anyways, he will just sleep or quietly play with a caregiver in his bedroom. The only time he will acknowledge Changkyun is if Kihyun wants to sleep on him.

The fact that Kihyun doesn't want to play with Changkyun wouldn't be a big deal if Changkyun hadn't attached himself to Kihyun already. He trusts Kihyun because he is another little.

And he doesn't exactly trust Hyungwon.

With Kihyun consistently being the youngest, Hyungwon has ended up taken the role as the oldest. He constantly tries to take care of Kihyun, even when the other wants to be left alone.

Jooheon can confidently say that it makes Changkyun feel left out and alone.

Regardless, the problem at hand isn't the fact that Hyungwon and Changkyun aren't close. The problem is that Kihyun won't come into the kitchen and convince Changkyun to climb out from underneath the table.

He crawled under the table a few minutes ago whenever Jooheon asked if he wanted to take a bath, and he has been crying ever since. Jooheon could crawl under there too, but he doesn't want to startle the boy.

"Changkyun, it's okay," he tries again for the millionth time. "I won't do anything you don't want me to do. What if I let you get a little bit of ice cream after taking a bath? How about that?"

He is sitting on the floor with his legs spread apart in an attempt to tempt Changkyun to come closer. It would be even more terrifying for the little to have Jooheon towering over him.

Hesitantly, Changkyun crawls towards him, slowly settling in between the elder's legs, sitting with his legs underneath him, on his ankles.

"That's my good boy," Jooheon says softly.

He takes his time extending his arm to wipe away Changkyun's tears; he doesn't need to rush this. Changkyun will trust him when he is ready, and if he doesn't want to be cared for right now, then Jooheon will just have to deal with that.

"Sowwy," Changkyun whispers. "Kyun bad."

"You didn't do anything wrong, baby boy. You're okay. Now, do you want to go take a bath with me or do you want me to see if Hyungwon will help you?"

"Joo," Changkyun quickly speaks, reaching out to clutch Jooheon's shirt.

Jooheon grins. "Alright."

-

The second big incident occurs a week later.

Jooheon hears crying from the living room. To make it worse, it's obviously Changkyun.

He doesn't hesitate to leave the bedroom to see what is going on. Changkyun is more important that writing lyrics anyways.

"Kyun? Baby?"

Changkyun is sitting on the floor, looking up at where Kihyun is on the couch in Minhyuk's lap. Kihyun is comfortably sleeping with his head on Minhyuk's shoulder and legs folded underneath him so he can sit on Minhyuk's thighs and face him. He looks peaceful, which is isn't all that suprising because it's his naptime anyways.

"What's wrong?" Jooheon crouches down on the floor next to Changkyun, extending an arm to brush the other's hair away from his face.

"Kihyunnie!"

"You wanna play with Kihyun?" Jooheon asks to confirm.

"Yeah."

Jooheon glances back up at Minhyuk. "Well, Kihyun is sleeping right now. He doesn't always want to play, and he doesn't have to, sweetie."

Changkyun pouts.

Jooheon really needs a way to fix this.

-

When the third incident of Changkyun being regected occurs, before Jooheon can comfort him, Hyungwon glances over at Changkyun and opens his mouth.

"Play with me," Hyungwon says.

Jooheon is shocked to say the least. He didn't expect Hyungwon to even look up from playing with his blocks.

Changkyun glances up at Kihyun, who is sitting on the couch cuddled up to Minhyuk's side, and then looks over at Hyungwon playing with blocks. He seems confused because Hyungwon is talking to him.

"Play," Hyungwon repeats.

The youngest little glances back at Kihyun before slowly nodding. He takes his time crawling over to Hyungwon and sitting down next to him. With a huff, he picks up a block.

Hyungwon grins and wraps his arms around the younger. "Kyun!"

Changkyun doesn't return the hug, but surprisingly he doesn't push Hyungwon away.

Jooheon silently decides that its a step in the right direction.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Im still accepting ideas btw. Idk when and what I'll update next,,, I hope you continue to support me
> 
> But hey follow me on Twitter @ babykihyuk  
> I'll follow back! I just made it and I'm looking for mutuals
> 
> Ill also possibly post tiny tiny chapters that don't really fit anywhere but are cute, so be sure to follow me


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me explain, I didn't mean to make this a bit Kihyun centric towards the end, but i really wanted to foreshadow something and be obvious about it, so I had to make it non-Hyungwon centric the second half.
> 
> I was surprised i updated at all but I forgot this was sitting in my drafts??

Saying Hyungwon has slight abandonment issues is a huge understatement.

When his little self was abandoned by his caregiver, it impacted him quite a bit. He gets nervous when he is little and away from Minhyuk for long periods of time, but he hasn't had to think about that because Minhyuk is usually very close by.

Hyungwon is supposed to be with the group right now. He wonders how long it will take them to realize that they got seperated in the crowd. Truly it wouldn't be a big deal, they have gotten seperated before, but Hyungwon has felt little all day.

So when people got in between him and the group, his legs stopped working, and his brain stopped functioning like a proper adult.

He is alone without Monsta X and in a crowd of people  in the midde of Seoul. That's all he can think about. His height gives him no advantage when he feels so small, and his eyes dart to the sidewalk underneath him. He is frozen in place, not caring how many people hit his shoulders.

He fights back a whimper and clenches his fist. How long will it take one of the caregivers to realize he is gone? What if Minhyuk doesn't like him anymore? Did he do something bad?

He wants to cry. He really wants to cry, but he can't because he is supposed to be a big boy who isn't scared of anything.

Minhyuk always told him that he would never leave. Why isn't he trying find Hyungwon now? He promised that he would always be there.

He lied.

Someone bumps into him rather roughly, and his legs buckle underneath him. It hurts when his knees slam into the ground, but it doesn't hurt as much as his heart does.

"Kid? You okay?" A rough voice asks.

Hyungwon freezes on the spot.

He knows that voice.

If he was feeling bigger, he would run. He would tell the person to leave him the fuck alone. He can't though, he is too deep in his headspace to turn back now. All he can do is sit on the ground pitifully.

"Hey," the person calls when Hyungwon doesn't look up. "Can you hear me? Are you hurt?"

His bottom lip begins to wobble, and he feels like he can't breathe. "Appa," he whimpers.

The man takes a moment to respond. "Hyungwon? Is that you?" He crouches down.

Hyungwon lifts his head to stare into familiar eyes. He is scared and alone, and here is a familar face. The man has grown a bit of a beard now, and he defiently looks older. Regardless, Hyungwon reminds himself of all the good times they did have. He doesn't care that this is his previous caregiver who left him. He just doesn't want to be alone.

"S-scared."

"Okay, honey, who did you come here with? Did you get lost?" He asks patiently.

The man seems changed, maybe even more mature, and Hyungwon is scared enough to trust him. He is familar and here in his time of need.

Hyungwon nods slowly.

"Do you know the names of the people you were with?"

The little thinks of the person he wants to see most. "Kihyunnie."

"Kihyun," the man says slowly, getting used to the name on his tongue. "Well, let's go find Kihyun, okay?" He leans forward, wiping away the stray tears that fell from his eyes. "You're okay. I'll get you back with your friends. I'm sorry about those years ago. I should have taken better care of you, Won."

Hyungwon leans into the touch. He misses Minhyuk, but he isn't wanted anymore clearly. He can trust this guy; he knows Hyungwon very well.

A face mask covers Hyungwon's face and his hood is pulled all the way up. He didn't want anyone to recognise him, and he doesn't bother to take them off. If he doesn't find the group, then that's fine. He will find someone new.

With the man's help, he stands up. A familar hand presses against his lower back, guiding him through the crowd.

"What does Kihyun look like?"

Hyungwon bites his lip. He could tell him what Kinyun looks like, but he doesn't even know if he is wanted. Minhyuk left him, didn't he?

"Want ice cream."

The male chuckles. "Of course you do, sweetie. Won't your friends miss you if we waste time?"

He shakes his head.

"You know I can't say no to you. Do you want vanilla?"

The enter the same ice cream shop they used to go to years ago. It's always empty, rarely getting any buisness because most people buy street food.

Hyungwon sits quietly at a booth while the male orders his ice cream. He glances out the window, wondering if at least Kihyun noticed his disappearance.

Footsteps approach his table and a bowl of ice cream is placed in front of him. The male sits across from him. "Eat slowly, Won." He pauses. "I'm guessing you got seperated from your friends and then panicked, so you fell into little space?"

The little doesn't respond. He just quietly eats his ice cream.

"You know, it's really unsafe for you to be on your own. There are creeps and stuff who could hurt you."

"Left Wonnie," he says softly.

"Me? I know, and I'm sorry. It was a big mistake, okay, but I'm glad you have good people to support and love you now. You look so much healthier. I'm happy for you, I really am."

Hyungwon looks up and shakes his head. "Daddy."

"He left you? Well, I'm sure he'll come back because he misses you."

Hyungwon shrugs and returns to his ice cream, making no effort to continue the conversation. Eating in silence, he finishes his ice cream quickly and they go back outside to find Kihyun. The male pulls Hyungwon's face mask back over his face and lifts his hood.

Hyungwon doesn't want to admit the fact that he is very upset that no one seems to be looking for him. He wants to go home and play with his toys, not wander through crowds looking for people. Part of him wants to throw a fit because he really wants to go home, but he doesn't know where home is and it would be rude to throw a fit right now.

"Hyungwon, who are we looking for?"

"Kihyunnie!"

The man smiles. "I meant what does he look like, silly. What is he wearing?"

"Red hair." Hyungwon pauses. "Tiny."

"A short man with red hair? Can't be too hard to find him."

Hyungwon lets himself be guiding as he loses himself in his thoughts again.

Minhyuk was always so kind, was that fake? Does Minhyuk not want to take care of him? Did he ask for too much attention? He doesn't know what he did wrong to deserve this, but he feels so, so alone.

"Is Wonnie bad?" He asks quietly.

"Bad? Of course not. You're a really good boy, always sweet and well-behaved. We will find your friends, Won. I promise."

If they don't, will Hyungwon be out on the streets? Will he have to go home with this man? He bites his lol, worrying about the possibility of never seeing Minhyuk or Kihyun again.

Everything feels unreal as he continues walking. He doesn't even bother to help look for Kihyun, he can't. His brain feels fuzzy and he is so tired.

It takes a few minutes before he starts crying and pulling on the male's jacket. It's familar even if it's been years when he pulls Hyungwon down an empty alleyway, as far away from everyone as they can get.

He wants to go home. He wants his stuffed animals and pacifier. He wants to sleep with Minhyuk and Kihyun and feel so safe. He doesn't want to be here or anywhere that's not back at the dorm.

"Oh, sweetie, please don't cry. You'll be okay," the male wipes Hyungwon's eyes and brushes his hair away from his forehead. "I know you're upset, but we will find Kihyun, okay? Do you have a phone?"

Hyungwon blinks, taking a moment to process his words, before nodding. He takes his phone out of his pocket and hands it over.

The man opens it and goes through the contacts while Hyungwon shifts from foot to foot anxiously. Eventually he hits a name and brings it to his own ear.

"Hi, is this Kihyun?"

"Hyungwon? Where is he?"

"He is okay, just wants to go home I think. Says he got seperated from you. I found him on the sidewalk. Where are you?" He eyes Hyungwon who now is attached to his arm.

"Where am I?! Where are you? You practically kidnapped him! I'll call the police, and-"

"He wanted help. Listen, let's just choose a place to meet up."

They decide on a place and hang up before Hyungwon gets the chance to protest.

The man gently guides him out of the alley and towards the small convience store they agreed on. Hyungwon patiently sits down on a bench in front of it, and the male sits next to him.

He puts Hyungwon's phone in the said boy's jacket pocket and leans back. They fall into a comfortable silence filled only by the sound of people rushing past.

Hyungwon feels like it takes forever before Kihyun runs up and pulls him off the bench, wrapping his arms tightly around the younger's waist.

"I was worried sick," Kihyun whispers. "I was so scared something had happened to you."

Hyungwon glances over Kihyun's shoulder to see the other five members approach him as well. They all seem relieved to see him, except Minhyuk, who is glaring at Hyungwon's previous caregiver.

"You kidnapped him," Minhyuk accuses.

Hyungwon shakes his head. "Him help."

Minhyuk sighs. "You can't just run off like that, baby."

"Left Wonnie."

Kihyun rubs the little's back, still holding him close. "He thinks we left him. Hyungwon, we didn't know where you were. We tried to look for you, baby."

"Let's get him home," Hyunwoo says. "Thank you for your help."

Hyungwon pouts when Kihyun lets him go, but he doesn't protest.

He doesn't want to do anything to make them want to get rid of him again.

-

When they arrive home, Minhyuk can tell something is wrong. Hyungwon isn't acting like himself. In fact, he doesn't want any one of the caregivers to touch him. When Minhyuk asked if he needed to be put down for a nap, he completely ignored him.

So, Minhyuk asks the only person who might be able to help.

.

"Absolutely not."

Minhyuk places his hands on Kihyun's hips from behind. "I know it's a big favor, Kihyun, but he doesn't want us. Maybe if you take care of him then he will open up. He is sitting in the bedroom coloring a picture all alone. Jooheon is watching him, but Hyungwon won't let him touch him. Please. You're his boyfriend too."

Kihyun gently shoves Minhyuk away and returns to washing the dishes, shaking his head. Minhyuk doesn't have to ask, he guesses that Kihyun is angry. Everything has been building up and it was only a matter of time before Kihyun snapped.

Minhyuk just wishes it wasn't right now.

"He thinks we left him," Minhyuk continues. "Why are you being selfish?"

"Selfish? I'm being selfish? Minhyuk, what if I drop while I'm taking care of him. You know I have the youngest headspace age! What if he gets hurt? Everyone is going to blame me." Kihyun washes his hands and refuses to look at Minhyuk.

Minhyuk feels like an idiot.

Kihyun isn't angry; he is scared.

"If you drop, then I'll be there. Please talk to him, okay?"

Kihyun dries off his hands and finally turns to look at Minhyuk. For the first time, Minhyuk notices how stressed and exhausted he looks. His hair is a bit messy and the frown on his face looks permanent.

"Fine. I'll go talk to him now, but I'll do it alone."

Minhyuk gently kisses his forehead. "Thank you."

Kihyun leaves without another word because truly he is terrified. What if Hyungwon doesn't even want to talk to him? Then what? What if he makes the situation worse?

With a sigh, Kihyun opens the bedroom door to find Hyungwon coloring a picture on the floor and Jooheon sitting on his own bed, watching him.

Jooheon glances up upon Kihyun's entry. "Oh, hey. Minhyuk finally talked you into it?"

"I'd like to do it alone if that's alright with you."

"Of course," Jooheon nods before standing up and exiting the room, closing the door behind himself.

Kihyun stares down at Hyungwon and feels his heart pounding in his chest.

He looks so fragile sitting down on the floor like an elementary student. His face is scrunched in concentration as he colors the picture of the beach, taking his time to color the water blue. If he noticed Kihyun walked in, he doesn't bother to show it.

Upon further looking, Kihyun notices his own favorite red pacifier is in Hyungwon's mouth.

He tries not to get angry or feel little at all. Part of him is screaming, reminding himself that the pacifier is his and his daddy gave it to him. The other half of him is reminding himself that Minhyuk is relying on him to make Hyungwon feel better.

The pacifier is his though, and is it really fair that Hyungwon gets to use it? Kihyun doesn't use Hyungwon's pacifiers! How is this allowed?! Why did Jooheon let him put it in his mouth?

He struggles to clear all thoughts from his head.

"Hyungwon," Kihyun says softly. "Hyungwon, we need to talk about what happened today. Did you know that man?" He reaches over and tugs the pacifiers away, setting it on the nightstand.

Hyungwon glances up, eyeing Kihyun, before looking back down. "Old daddy."

"He used to be your daddy?"

"Him left Wonnie alone, so did Daddy, Joo, Seok, and Woo." Tears begin to form in his eyes, and he wipes them away with a closed fist.

Kihyun sighs, settling down to sit in front of the little. "That's not true, Hyungwon. We got separated, and we did try to look for you. Everyone was so worried, baby."

"Even Daddy?" Hyungwon glances up, eyes full of hope.

The main vocalist can't help but smile. "Especially him."

Hyungwon takes a moment to process this before pouting. "Want."

"Why don't we pick up all these crayons and go to him, okay?"

Hesitantly, Hyungwon begins putting up the crayons and Kihyun watches. Really he is struggling to remain in his adult headspace, but this is for a good cause. If he drops now, he would make an even bigger mess. It would end up upsetting Hyungwon more.

When Hyungwon is finished, Kihyun leads him into the living room where Minhyuk is sitting on the couch. The little immediately runs towards Minhyuk and jumps into his lap.

Kihyun clenches his fists, watching as Hyungwon smiles while Minhyuk showers him in kisses.

Kihyun is fine. He is really fine.

"You're such a good boy, Hyungwon. I'm sorry we didn't find you sooner."

Hyungwon giggles. "It okay."

Kihyun forces a smile. "The man was his previous caregiver. I'm glad it was at least someone Hyungwon knew. We just have to be careful from now on and make sure that he doesn't feel abandoned." He sits down next to Minhyuk and pets Hyungwon's hair. "We shouldn't have let this happen. I didn't even know he was feeling little."

"It won't happen again, Kihyun. He will never see that man again."

Somehow, Kihyun sincerely doubted that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aight so now we have two options. 
> 
> I can post the Kihyun centric chapter 
> 
> Or we can wait for me to get inspiration to write something else  
> Anyways continue giving me ideas please, I love you guys!! Just let me know what you want to see more of.
> 
> Follow me on Twitter @ babykihyuk and I'll follow back!!
> 
> Btw I'm looking for an unofficial beta reader, so if you're interested in that, hmu


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay imma be real, this is my favorite chapter I've ever written because littler Kihyun is just the cutest thing in my opinion, and I love helper Hyungwon??
> 
> I love this fic so much
> 
> Also i wrote most of this like three weeks ago so it might suck, I finished it today lol
> 
> Anyways read the ending notes please :)

Hyunwoo knows it, he sees it in the way Kihyun is so clearly in a bad mood. The little's head is rested against Hyungwon's shoulder and he is silently playing with Minhyuk's fingers. Squished between them, he should be happy, but Hyunwoo knows it's the quietest he has been all day.

Earlier that morning, Hyunwoo had woken up to something crashing. He ran into the kitchen to find Kihyun standing in front of a broken cup-

The cup Minhyuk's mom gave Minhyuk after he debuted. There was nothing paticularly special about it besides the fact that it had their debut date written on the handle, but it always made Minhyuk feel better about being away from his parents.

And somehow Kihyun had broken it.

"I-I was cleaning and I-"

"Kihyun, calm down," Hyunwoo stepped around the glass and placed his hand on Kihyun's shoulder.

Kihyun shoved him away. "Don't fucking touch me!"

The leader glanced at the younger's wobbling bottom lip, but he decided not to push it. Instead, he took a large step back.

"Minhyuk isn't going to hate you, Kihyun. It isn't nearly as-"

"Leave me alone!"

Hyunwoo knew he should correct Kihyun because he is older, the leader, and Kihyun should not be speaking to him that way. Regardless, he let it go.

Of course, when Minhyuk figured it out, he wasn't mad, but Kihyun yelled at Minhyuk too when he tried to hug him. An hour later, he snapped at Changkyun when the younger offered to help him clean. When they finally left for the fansign, Kihyun got in a fight with Hoseok about who got to sit in the front seat. Truthfully, it was a one sided fight. Hoseok quickly tried to stop by giving in and letting Kihyun do as he pleased.

So currently, Hyunwoo knows very well that Kihyun is feeling little. The signs are obvious, but much unlike him. Usually, Kihyun will tell Minhyuk if he is feeling little, despite the circumstance, so everyone is convinced Kihyun is just in a bad mood.

The detail that Hyunwoo is stuck on is the fact that Kihyun's bottom lip was trembling earlier. Sure, he could pass it off as guilt, but Kihyun expresses his guilt through words usually and rarely cries outside of his little space.

Hyunwoo can't do anything about the fact that Kihyun is feeling little. He guesses that the only reason Kihyun is quiet right now is that his little self is nearly taking over and he is in need of a nap. Hyunwoo knows he isn't completely gone yet because if he was, he would be pouting and whining about wanting to be in one of the caregivers' laps.

They have a fansign in a few minutes, so Hyunwoo decides to keep the fact to himself and quietly requests to the manager that Kihyun should be the last member on the end of the table and Hyunwoo should be next to him in case something happens.

If Kihyun happens to fall in his little space during the fansign, Hyunwoo doesn't know what he is going to do, but he will probably say Kihyun is sick. Option 2 is talking the little into staying quiet, of course Hyunwoo isn't sure how he is going to sign stuff like that, but there isn't much he can do.

The leader watches as Changkyun stares at a small elephant plushie on a keychain connected to one of the makeup artists' bags.

Changkyun is feeling little too.

Now, the leader is panicking. Unlike Kihyun, Changkyun is completely unfamilar with knowing if he feels little or how to keep himself from slipping. He is also completely unpredictable in his little space because of something that happened in the past.

Hyunwoo has no idea what to do, but the staff starts asking the members to get up and greet the fans. He stands up and takes a glance at Kihyun.

One of the makeup artists, a smaller woman, is trying to coax him into getting up since he fell asleep. He yawns and rubs his eyes with his fists and pouts before looking around like he is confused.

_No, no, no._

"Kihyun! Come on!" Jooheon calls, smiling.

Kihyun blinks a few times before getting off the couch. "Sorry. I didn't mean to fall asleep."

Hyunwoo is relieved. He rushes the members to get on stage before the fans get too rowdy.

-

Overall, the fansign goes okay until the last few minutes when they are saying goodbye.

Hyunwoo watches in terror as Jooheon wraps his arm around Changkyun's shoulder like he always does, and something in him completely snaps.

Every member clearly hears the softest whimper from the youngest.

Hyunwoo says a quick goodbye before getting everyone backstage and away from prying eyes. Jooheon carefully guides Changkyun to the couch and sits down. The younger crawls into his lap and attaches himself to Jooheon, his head rested on Jooheon's shoulder and Changkyun's fist clutching onto the other's buttoned up shirt.

"It's okay, baby. You did so good, okay? It's just us now. You're okay."

Hyunwoo hears Kihyun's wailing before he sees it, but he should have expected it. The younger was grumpy earlier, so clearly he was going to be grumpy in his little space. Hyunwoo just didn't expect him to burst out into tears.

Minhyuk picks him up and runs into the bathroom before closing the door and setting Kihyun on the sink.

"Shh, shh, Daddy is here, Kihyunnie," he pulls his phone out of his pocket.

He can't exactly leave Kihyun alone and having him in the bathroom muffles his cries so the fans won't hear it outside, so he calls Hoseok.

"Hoseok, grab my backpack and bring it in here, okay?" He hangs up after speaking.

Kihyun doesn't quiet down at all, in fact he just cries harder and kicks his legs a bit. Minhyuk stares at the tears running down his cheeks, and his heart aches with the need to calm him down.

"Baby boy, you're going to choke yourself if you don't stop hyperventilating," he says as calmly as he can before pulling the little's legs apart and standing between them. "Kihyunnie, please look at me."

The little just thrashes a bit, and finally the door opens revealing Hoseok holding Minhyuk's bag. He places it on the sink counter next to Kihyun.

"None of us even knew he was feeling little. I just thought he was having a bad day and upset about breaking my cup," Minhyuk sighs, turning his attention to search through his bag. "Ah."

Minhyuk pulls out Kihyun's red pacifier and attempts to offer it to him, but Kihyun whines in protest and pushes Minhyuk's hand away.

Kihyun has never acted like this. Sure, he throws fits, but he never says no when he is offered a pacifier. Minhyuk is a bit confused, but mostly worried.

"Try picking him up and bouncing him or rocking him a bit," Hoseok suggests.

Minhyuk will try anything at this point, so he pulls Kihyun close to his body and lifts him off of the sink, supporting his weight by holding his butt. Kihyun's arms wrap around his neck and legs wrap around his waist.

Minhyuk sways side to side slowly, softly humming. At first, Kihyun doesn't stop crying, but a minute into it, his cries die down into the soft whimpers and heavy breathing as he tries to catch his breath.

"That's my good boy, hm?" Hoseok quietly coos, reaching over to pet Kihyun's hair as the little rests his head on Minhyuk's shoulder.

"Can you bring Hyungwon in here? I'm almost positive he dropped when Kihyun screamed," Minhyuk whispers in an attempt to not bother Kihyun.

Hoseok nods and leaves, and Minhyuk doesn't stop gently swaying. He feels one of Kihyun's hands leave his neck, and the little starts sucking on his own thumb. Minhyuk's heart feels so full, he can't fight the smile that appears on his face. He is glad Kihyun is at least happier like this.

When Hoseok returns, Hyungwon is holding his hand, eyeing Kihyun curiously.

"Kihyunnie is very tired, baby, so Daddy is going to stay like this a bit longer. Thank you for being a good boy. Are you tired?"

Hyungwon shakes his head.

Hoseok speaks for him, "He is feeling a bit older today. He even told me that he doesn't want his pacifier, but he was whining that Changkyun didn't want to play."

"Okay. Well, I'm going to stand here until my arms almost give out, and then we are going to carefully carry him to the van and leave. I'm so scared if I stop swaying, he will cry again, and he is being so quiet right now. Are his eyes closed?"

Hoseok lets go of Hyungwon's hand and moves to stare at Kihyun's face. "Yeah. Do you want me to get his pacifier?"

"No. I'm pretty sure if I move him too much, he will start crying all over again. I've never seen him so...little. Hyungwon was like this after he had that nightmare, but it wasn't this bad."

Hoseok smiles. "When we get home, we need to get him changed into those diapers we bought when you freaked out because you thought Hyungwon was littler than Kihyun."

Minhyuk hums. "My arms are burning, so I need you to quietly gather all the members and get them in the van and ask them to be very quiet. I'm going to sit in the back with him in my lap and Hyungwon next to us."

It takes a minute, but Hoseok and the manager help Minhyuk into the van followed by Hyungwon before they gather everyone else. Changkyun almost cries when Jooheon sets him down in his own seat, but Hyunwoo quickly hands him his phone to play a game.

The ride is dead silent, and Minhyuk is apprechiative of that. Hyungwon occupies himself by listening to kids' music using Hoseok's phone and headphones.

When they arrive home, everyone leaves the van and heads upstairs. Minhyuk immediately heads to his room and closes the door in an attempt to block out the noise of Hyungwon asking Changkyun to play with him (he will probably get rejected again anyways).

He places Kihyun on the bed and carefully takes his thumb out of his mouth and replaces it with a pacifier before slowly undressing him completely while listening to the whimpers of protest. He replaces Kihyun's underwear with a diaper and pulls a soft white sweater over his head and guides his arms to go through the sleeves. Finally, he puts blacks sweatpants on him.

"Oh, baby," he coos softly. "I wish you would have told me you felt little, especially if you felt a lot younger than normal."

He pulls the blankets over Kihyun and sits on the edge of the bed, carding his fingers through the little's hair in an attempt to ease the soft whimpers.

He loves Kihyun, so much. It doesn't matter if he is a bit tired, taking care of the littles always makes him feel better. There is something about caring for them that eases his mind and makes him feel better.

Most of the members don't think about it, but he needs this too. He needs to feel needed and take care of his babies. He does feel a bit bothered when the littles go through long periods of time without being in little space. It effects Minhyuk too. Everyone seems to think he sees taking care of them as a chore, but he that's the last thing he would ever think.

As he stares at Kihyun, he feels so much better.

Kihyun slowly relaxes, and finally Minhyuk decides to leave him alone and let him sleep.

Minhyuk finds a strange scene in the living room. He wasn't gone for long, but somehow Hyungwon is only in a white buttoned up shirt and boxers and Changkyun is changed into a hoodie and sweatpants. The other caregivers are no where to be seen, and the littles are quietly coloring in their own coloring books.

At least they aren't fighting.

Minhyuk slips passed them and into the kitchen to find Jooheon, Hoseok, and Hyunwoo all struggling to make dinner. There are random vegetables not even cut up and they seem to be in the middle of arguing about what to make.

"Hey," Minhyuk interupts. "Look, just order take out. I know it's not healthy, but Kihyun won't be cooking or waking up anytime soon and we haven't had all three littles together in a few weeks. Let's enjoy it while we can."

Hoseok begins putting the food back up. "What will Kihyun eat?"

Hyunwoo speaks up. "Probably just cereal if we can get him to eat that. I really wish we had a baby bottle or something. I know liquids aren't exactly food, but I think it would help ease him. I don't want to think about what we are going to do when he wakes up."

Minhyuk lets Jooheon order food so he can sit in the living room and watch Hyungwon and Changkyun.

Minhyuk wouldn't trade this life for anything.

-

They are halfway through dinner when they hear a cry. They are sitting on the floor, eating take out, and everyone is there except Kihyun. Hyungwon is happily feeding himself, sitting in between Hoseok and Hyunwoo, and Changkyun is accepting spoonfuls of some soup from Jooheon.

It _was_ really peaceful.

Minhyuk doesn't think of littler Kihyun as a problem. He finds it very cute, but he knows how infants tend to act and how unpredictable the situation is. He doesn't expect a peaceful evening unless he can get Kihyun under control.

He stands up and approaches his room. When he opens the door, he sees exactly what he expected: Kihyun is sitting up and crying loudly with his pacifier on the floor. At the sight of Minhyuk, he quiets down.

"Hi, baby. Daddy didn't leave you or anything, okay?" Minhyuk rushes over to kiss the top of his head.

Kihyun visably relaxes, and Minhyuk decides it's probably best to carry him everywhere to avoid screaming.

His arms are going to ache in the morning, not that he minds.

Minhyuk quickly changes into shorts and a t-shirt before picking up Kihyun and walking into the living room, sitting back on the floor with Kihyun in his lap. For once, the little's back is pressed against Minhyuk's chest.

Hyunwoo stands up. "I'll get him some cereal in a bowl and put milk in a cup."

As he leaves, Hoseok flashes Minhyuk a look. "You think he will be okay without a bottle?"

"We don't have much of a choice, now do we? If he is going to eat, it's going to have to be something like cereal," Minhyuk says while rubbing Kihyun's stomach. "I don't know how I'm going to feed him like this though. Someone is going to have to be brave and feed him, just hope he doesn't bite your hand."

"He might be more likely to eat if Hyungwon feeds him," Jooheon suggests before blowing on a spoonful of soup to cool it off for Changkyun.

Hyunwoo finally returns with a cup in his hand and a bowl of cereal, and Minhyuk moves to sit on the couch.

"Hyungwonnie, baby," Minhyuk calls. "You want to be a good boy and come help Daddy feed Kihyunnie?"

Hyungwon nods enthusiastically and moves to sit next to him. Hesitantly, Hyunwoo hands the little the bowl of cereal.

"Kihyunnie! Open!" Hyungwon smiles brightly.

Suprisingly, Kihyun opens his mouth and accepts the small piece of cereal. He doesn't chew it, just waits for it to melt a bit before swallowing. They continue this pattern until the bowl is empty, and Hyunwoo hands Kihyun the sippy cup.

He doesn't seem impressed with the idea of drinking until Minhyuk guides the cup to his lips. Kihyun easily gives in and drinks it.

"Pway?" Changkyun whines softly.

"No, I don't-" Hyunwoo begins.

Changkyun quickly pulls his knees to his chest. "Kyun sorry."

Jooheon blinks in confusion. "Kyun, no. He didn't mean it as in you're in trouble, baby. Woo just thinks we should be a bit quiet for Kihyunnie."

Tears fall from the youngest's face, and Jooheon glares at Hyunwoo.

"I didn't know he was going to freak out if I said no."

"He was just beginning to trust us!" Jooheon hisses. Quickly, he turns to Changkyun. "Why don't we go watch TV in the bedroom with Wonnie on my laptop?What about that, baby?"

Changkyun seems interested enough, so Jooheon takes it as it's okay for him to stand up and pulls Changkyun's hand. Hyungwon scrambles to get off the couch and quickly joins them on their "adventure".

Minhyuk turns his attention to Kihyun. Part of him wishes Hyungwon wanted to spend time with him and Kihyun, but he knows that if Hyungwon is feeling bigger, he is going to be insistent on not doing "baby things".

Without warning, Kihyun drops the cup and shoves his thumb in his mouth. Minhyuk smiles fondly.

"You okay, Min?" Hoseok asks.

Minhyuk nods. "Just a long day." He helps Kihyun turn himself around so the little can straddle him and rest his head on Minhyuk's shoulder. "I'm just - I'm really lucky to have them, you know? I never thought of myself as someone who likes to care for others, but sometimes when they go weeks without being little, I miss them. I love their little selves and their bigselves and I-" his voice cracks.

He's _crying_.

"I'm just extremely lucky to have them."

"They love you a lot, you know," Hoseok reaches over to wipe away his tears. "You give them the best lives they could possibly have."

Something strikes in Kihyun and he starts crying too.

"I guess he doesn't want you to cry," Hoseok tries to hold in his laugh since Minhyuk is glaring and Kihyun is crying and getting louder by the second.

Minhyuk reaches over to the side table and takes the pacifier to offer it to Kihyun. The little accepts it in between his lips and settles down, body going limp against Minhyuk.

They can vaguely hear giggling from Hyungwon and Changkyun, and Minhyuk knows this is his home. His home is with his two boyfriends and four best friends.

He doesn't know what he would do without them.

Minhyuk slips his hand up Kihyun's shirt, and the little sighs contently as Minhyuk rubs his back.

Kihyun stays quiet for a while, until Changkyun and Hyungwon come running through the living room to check on them.

"Daddy! Daddy!" Hyungwon excitedly jumps on the couch next to Minhyuk.

Minhyuk isn't sure if Kihyun was asleep, but if he was, he isn't asleep anymore. The distress starts off as whimpering as Minhyuk turns on the TV for the littles to keep them distracted, and then it turns into crying.

"Do you want to try rocking him, or do you want me to?" Hyunwoo asks, watching as Changkyun struggles to climb on the couch next to Hyungwon and get comfortable.

Minhyuk is hesitant, but Kihyun is gripping him so tightly. "I'll do it. I don't think he is going to sleep though." He stands up and slowly walk to their room. "You're okay, baby. Shh, Daddy is here."

Minhyuk sways slightly from side to side like before. Kihyun is heavy in his arms, but his heart feels so full when Kihyun rests his head back down against Minhyuk's shoulder and he sighs so softly. The crying turns into sniffles before the sniffles turn into soft breathing.

When he is sure Kihyun is calm, Minhyuk sits on the bed, holding Kihyun close to him. "Did you just get overwhelmed with everyone being a bit loud, sweetie? Where's your shark, hm?"

Kihyun sits up and slides off of his lap, rubbing his eyes. With a smile, Minhyuk pushes the little's hair away from his face.

"I see your interested in playing, hm?"

Minhyuk stands up and walks over to Kihyun's bunk. Easily, he finds Kihyun's favorite plushie and grabs the small puppy plushie as well. He settles down on his own bed next to Kihyun and hands him the shark.

When Kihyun smiles brightly, Minhyuk almost cries from happiness. His baby boy is so, so cute; he leans over and gently kisses Kihyun's forehead, and the giggle he gets as a response is like music to his ears.

"Not gonna speak today?" Minhyuk asks, holding the puppy plushie in front of him, silently offering if Kihyun wants to play.

They do end up playing. Kihyun makes soft barking noises, but other than that he doesn't speak. Most of their playing consists of Kihyun attacking the puppy with his shark, just to giggle and Minhyuk reactions (which are always overreactions so that Kihyun has fun).

It doesn't take long for Kihyun to decide it's time for bed. Minhyuk convinces him to go to the bathroom, brush his teeth, and wash his face (all with Minhyuk's help of course) before he gives up on using his limbs all together.

"Alright, baby boy," Minhyuk says softly. "Let's get you into bed. You wanna sleep with Daddy?"

The response he gets is a small hand pulling on his shirt; he guesses that it means yes.

Minhyuk tells Hoseok to put Hyungwon to bed at a decent hour before leading Kihyun back to their room. It isn't hard to get him to lie down with his head on Minhyuk's chest. If it was any other day he would whine about going to bed so early, but this time Kihyun is easy to coax into cuddling.

"I love you," Minhyuk says softly.

He recieves a soft grunt as a response.

-

Surprisingly, when Minhyuk wakes up, it's to Kihyun making quite a bit of noise. He glances over to see him struggling to look through drawers.

Minhyuk isn't sure where his head is right now, so he calls Kihyun's name cautiously. "Ki? What are you doing?"

"Clothes," Kihyun mumbles, still struggling to close a drawer.

It's not a good enough answer that gives Minhyuk's any insight on whether Kihyun is little or not. Kihyun's stuffed shark and pacifier are both lying on the bed next to Minhyuk, but still, he isn't sure.

"Practice isn't for another few hours," Minhyuk says slowly. "Why don't you come back to bed?"

"No," he grumbles.

"Kihyun," he tries again, confused. "Come on."

"No!" Kihyun practically shouts.

Okay, so Kihyun is in little space. Minhyuk can handle this.

He tells himself that anyways.

"Okay, sweetie, why are you looking for clothes?"

"Hamster."

Minhyuk stands up, abandoning Hyungwon, but the youngest doesn't even wake up. "Let me find it."

He easily finds Kihyun's hamster onesie and grabs a pair of boxers on the way to the bathroom, Kihyun following behind.

Kihyun doesn't fight when Minhyuk removes his diaper and replaces it with the pair of boxers. However, he does tell Minhyuk no when he tries to remove his sweater.

"Okay, you can keep it on." Minhyuk helps him into the outfit before buttoning it up. "Do you want to go back to bed?"

Part of him hopes Kihyun says yes because he wants him to wake up out of little space. They have to go to practice regardless of whether Kihyun wants to or not. Of course they could coax him out, but Minhyuk hates doing that.

"Wanna pway," he mumbles, rubbing his eyes.

"Play what, sweetie?"

Kihyun doesn't respond. Instead he walks forward, slaming into Minhyuk. His head finds Minhyuk's shoulder, though he can't rest his head on the top. Slim arms wrap around Minhyuk's waist. With a smile, Minhyuk returns the hug.

He is so lucky.

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[Extra:]

Hyungwon rubs his eyes, blinking at the scene in front of him. Kihyun is sitting on the floor of the living room, trying to shove a car in Changkyun's mouth. The youngest member is confused, but he doesn't push Kihyun away. He just accepts his fate.

"Where Daddy?" Hyungwon groans, settling on the floor next to Kihyun.

Upon further inspection, Hyungwon realises in his spare hand, Kihyun is holding a red pen. Both him and Changkyun are covered in marking, random lines, and scribbles from where Kihyun probably got bored. Hyungwon should be responsible like a big boy and take it away, right?

"Min kitchen," Changkyun tells him, half muffled by the car and Kihyun's hand.

"Kihyunnie, stop," Hyungwon sighs, reaching over and pulling the car away.

"No!" Kihyun pouts.

"Don't eat toys," he scolds.

Kihyun suddenly moves closer and marks Hyungwon's cheek with the pen. To say Hyungwon is shocked is an understatement, but he isn't mad. Minhyuk won't get mad because Kihyun did it, right? They aren't supposed to have markers or pens without supervision. It's Kihyun breaking the rules.

"Kihyunnie, give it," Hyungwon holds out his hand and glares.

The youngest little glances between the two older ones before reaching over and taking the pen from Kihyun. "Kihyunnie, no."

Hyungwon feels a bit proud that Changkyun is on his side! For once, he isn't standing on the side or defending Kihyun. Minhyuk would be proud too, right?!

Changkyun hands the pen to Hyungwon. "Kyun sorry."

"It 'kay, Kyun. Kihyunnie did it," Hyungwon smiles.

Kihyun is still pouting, and Hyungwon knows him well enough to know that the little is about to start throwing a fit, especially since none of the caregivers are around and he isn't getting what he wants. He is brat if you'd ask Hyungwon. If Hyungwon doesn't defuse the situation, he might get in trouble for making Kihyun cry! It's not Kihyun is going to tell Minhyuk anything. He will just cry and point at Hyungwon.

Sometimes its frustrating that Kihyun doesn't talk much.

"Kihyunnie, don't cry."

Reluctantly, he hands the pen back to Kihyun.

He immediately regrets it when the little marks Hyungwon's cheek and grins.

"Daddy!" Hyungwon yells angrily. "Kihyunnie breaks rules!!"

It takes a few seconds, but Minhyuk walks out of the kitchen and stares at the littles with an expression of pure horror. He seems to take a bit to process what is going on, but he approaches them and crouches down.

"Why is everyone covered in red markings, Hyungwon?"

"Kihyunnie had color," Hyungwon tells him.

Minhyuk ruffles his hair. "I guess I should have kept a close eye on him, but I have no idea where he got this from. I thought I picked everything up before I put these two in the living room. We should get you guys cleaned up though, huh?"

Kihyun's bottom lip starts wobbling and tears build up in his eyes. In a panic, Minhyuk cups his face and rubs his cheek using his thumb.

"You're not in trouble, sweetie. No one is in trouble. Let's go get you cleaned up, and then we can go find your shark and eat breakfast."

"Daddy," Hyungwon pulls on Minhyuk's shirt.

Minhyuk turns around and kisses his forehead. "Thank you for finding them. Wanna help get them clean?"

Hyungwon grins. Helping Minhyuk is one of his favorite things. He likes feeling helpful and taking care of the ones who act younger.

There are definetly good things about having the oldest headspace.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A few things  
> Looking for an unofficial beta reader!! Message me on Twitter if youre interested
> 
> You can find me on [twitter](https://t.co/dvZ6jEBdw6)! 
> 
> Continue giving me ideas and feedback! If i plan on writing your idea, I should have left a comment, so check for that. Also let me know what you wanna see more of
> 
> If I added littles from another group as side characters for a special chapter, what group and who would you want to be little?
> 
> Anyways, the next chapter will be out once i find motivation to write...i already wrote part of the next Hyungwon and Kyun friendship chapter lol


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First, I'd like to thank my beta reader for being so kind and great.
> 
> Secondly, I really loved writing this chapter? It is so cute :(( 
> 
> Also, look at my other kihyunghyuk fic? Ive been working so hard on it

Changkyun yawns. He is exhausted. Practice ended an hour ago, and luckily he was the first one to shower. He would go to sleep, but the light is still on because not everyone is done getting ready for bed yet. That means he is stuck lying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling.   
  
It gives him a lot of time to think.   
  
His first thought is about where his stuffed dinosaur is. He left it in Jooheon's bed last night, but it wasn't there when he looked. Jooheon should be here handing it to him and kissing him goodnight. Why is he still all alone in the room?   
  
Does Jooheon even know he feels little?   
  
He usually feels little after practice, so Jooheon checks on him every night. Why isn't he here yet? They tell him to get comfortable with his little side, but how can he when he is alone?   
  
Changkyun wants his dinosaur, and he really wants his pacifier. The green one preferably. He wants someone to come tuck him into bed and kiss his forehead. That's Jooheon's job. Jooheon shouldn't be abandoning him!   
  
The sound of footsteps brings Changkyun out of his thoughts. Sitting up, he scans the room and hopes to see Jooheon. Instead he finds Hyungwon stumbling in the room. His hair is wet, and he is wearing Minhyuk's white hoodie with sweatpants. He looks tired and stressed.   
  
Hyungwon glances up at him. "Kyun?"   
  
His voice sounds broken like a lost child, similar to when they found him after they got separated. Something switches in Changkyun, and he immediately feels filled with anxiety. Why is Hyungwon upset? Is something wrong? Will something hurt Changkyun?   
  
"Won," Changkyun whispers, feeling his bottom lip wobbling. Quickly, he climbs down from the top bunk and takes one of Hyungwon's hands in both of his. "What?"   
  
"Sweepy," Hyungwon slurs. "Want Daddy."   
  
Changkyun pouts. Well, he wants Jooheon, but he isn't complaining about it!! He wants to cry for him, but what good would that do? Would Jooheon come running? Would he get in trouble for crying? Would Jooheon be angry?   
  
Where is he?!   
  
Changkyun lets go of Hyungwon's hand and starts sobbing. He just wants his dinosaur, pacifier, kisses, and Jooheon! Why can't he have that? Did he do something wrong?   
  
Footsteps approach and they hear a voice. "Changkyun? Are you okay?"   
  
"Daddy," Hyungwon turns around to hug Minhyuk.    
  
The younger little turns to see Minhyuk with Hyungwon attached to his arm. He looks concerned and even a bit worried. His hair is wet, and he is wearing a white t-shirt and black shorts. Behind him, Hoseok is carrying Kihyun on his back. The little looks half asleep with his head rested on Hoseok's shoulder and arms tightly wrapped around him.   
  
"Why are you crying, sweetie?" Minhyuk says softly.   
  
He doesn't want Minhyuk! What if Minhyuk tries to touch or hit him? Jooheon isn't here to protect him. Even if Hyungwon trusts him, how is Changkyun supposed to be 100% okay with him?   
  
He stops crying as loudly and sniffles. "Joo!"   
  
"Oh, baby. He went out to his studio. He didn't know you felt little. I know he normally puts you to sleep, but why don't I do your night routine with you? Hyungwon and Kihyun will be right here too."    
  
Changkyun wipes his eyes and looks at everyone else in the room. "Won, here?"   
  
"He'll be here," Minhyuk nods. "Let's go get your teeth brushed, okay? Can you do it yourself like a big boy, or do you need my help?"   
  
.   
  
They end up in the bathroom, Kihyun sitting on the edge of the sink and Hoseok brushing his teeth, Hyungwon brushing Changkyun's teeth, and Minhyuk standing back and watching with a smile. Changkyun didn't want Minhyuk to touch him, so Hyungwon agreed to help. Clearly Kihyun is in no condition to do anything by himself. Besides, someone usually brushes his teeth these days.   
  
Minhyuk feels happy, really happy. He is tired from a long day of practice, but these moments seem to make everything worth it. Moments where he gets to baby the three cutest boys in the world.   
  
Hyungwon finally finishes up Changkyun and then brushes his own teeth. Changkyun clings to his free arm and nervously glances around, even making eye contact with Minhyuk only to look quickly at his feet.   
  
"Kyun, will you be okay sleeping on your own?" Minhyuk asks.   
  
Changkyun nods his head. "But want paci and dino."   
  
"Okay, I can do that. Hoseok, you want to put the baby to bed and I'll deal with these two?"   
  
Hoseok wipes off Kihyun's mouth from where he spit out water. "Where do you want him to sleep tonight? Hyunwoo bathed him, so he is good to sleep wherever."   
  
Minhyuk looks at Changkyun and Hyungwon and sighs. It's going to be difficult to put them to sleep, especially when Changkyun is so scared. It's probably best to go ahead and put Kihyun to bed before he gets incredibly grouchy and throws a fit.   
  
"Can you sleep with him? I'll come kiss him goodnight in a bit. As long as he has his red truck pacifier and bear, he should go right to sleep, but don't let him sleep on his own or he will panic in the morning. The last thing we need is him crying at 6 A.M. on our free day."   
  
Hoseok hums. "Of course, no problem, right baby?"   
  
Slowly he picks up Kihyun from the sink and carries him out of the room, leaving the remaining three standing. Minhyuk ruffles Hyungwon's hair as the little puts his toothbrush up and yawns.   
  
"Bedtime," Hyungwon slurs.    
  
"Yeah, sweetie. It is bedtime," Minhyuk kisses his forehead. "Let's go get both your pacifiers and stuffed animals."   
  
Changkyun looks over at Hyungwon with scared eyes. "Won," he tugs on his arm.   
  
"It 'kay, Kyun. Daddy help."   
  
Minhyuk smiles sweetly and extends his hand for Changkyun to grab. Reluctantly, Changkyun releases Hyungwon and takes the caregiver's hand. It's slow progress, but something is better than nothing, Minhyuk supposes.   
  
Together, they walk into the bedroom with Hyungwon following. Hyungwon immediately heads to the bed and pulls the blanket over his head. Changkyun seems even more nervous, but he lets Minhyuk lift him up and put him on his top bunk.   
  
"Paci."   
  
"I know, Kyun. Don't worry."   
  
Minhyuk turns around and goes to the other bunk, searching for his pacifier on Jooheon's bed. It's not hard to find it, but there are no signs of the dinosaur, which is slightly concerning. He can't just go to Changkyun and tell him his favorite stuffed animal is lost! The little always refuses to sleep unless he has his dinosaur or Jooheon next to him.   
  
Sighing, Minhyuk crouches further down to check under the bed. To his dismay, the only thing he finds is one of Kihyun's small cars that Minhyuk was supposed to put up since last time he shoved it in his mouth and nearly choked.   
  
(Seriously, he has no idea what it is about Hyungwon and Kihyun, but they have a compulsive need to shove things in their mouths.)   
  
"Changkyun," Minhyuk stands up and turns to face the little. He hands him the pacifier. "Your dino ran away."   
  
"No!'   
  
The caregiver takes back the pacifier and puts it in Changkyun's mouth. "I know you're upset, but you'll have to sleep without it."   
  
He shakes his head.   
  
Minhyuk scans his brain. He can't just ask Jooheon to come home because he can't handle the situation. The easiest way to get his babies to sleep is...   
  
"Can I hold you?" Minhyuk asks quietly.   
  
The little pouts, and Minhyuk can practically hear the gears in his head turning as he tries to think of a response.    
  
Kihyun always falls asleep fastest in Minhyuk's lap, straddling him with his head on the caregiver's shoulder. Maybe it won't work with Changkyun, but it's worth a shot. Even if it works, it won't be permanent. Minhyuk can't sleep like that so he will have to wait until Jooheon finally gets home.   
  
Minhyuk puts his hands on Changkyun's knees where his legs are dangling. "It's okay. I promise you can leave if you get uncomfortable, and I'll call Joo immediately."   
  
"And Wonnie?" He asks, voice muffled.   
  
"He'll be right there the whole time, okay?"   
  
He waits until the little nods his head, and then he picks him up and sits down with him on Minhyuk's bed. It isn't hard to coax Changkyun into his lap, especially since the little is getting even more grumpy and pouty.   
  
It takes Changkyun a few minutes before he finally gives in and goes limp with his head resting on the caregiver's shoulder. Minhyuk is glad when he does though because it means they took a giant step today. Changkyun is accepting someone else who isn't Hyungwon or Jooheon.   
  
He just needs time, that's all.   
  
Minhyuk just hopes that one day they will be able to play together as a big family. Sadly, he doesn't see that happening anytime soon.   
  
Regardless, Changkyun seems happy like this, so it's okay.   
  
They are all okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm trying to find motivation to write, but you can continue giving me ideas. If u suggested something, I'm sorry i haven't gotten to it :(  
> I'm struggling
> 
> You can find me on [twitter](https://t.co/dvZ6jEBdw6)! 
> 
> Follow me and ill follow back


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After a very long time, I'm finally back!! Sorry it's been a while, and updates are going to be even further apart with band season starting up. I swear I won't give up on this.
> 
> Also special thanks to my temporary beta reader for this chapter!

The alarm clock reads 5:00 A.M. when Hoseok wakes up to a nose rubbing against his cheek. It isn’t Hyunwoo because he is right next to him. There's a weight on Hoseok's lap and two hands perched on his shoulders to hold the person’s upper body up just so they can nose at Hoseok's cheek.   
  
It's a free day, which means waking up early in the morning is the last thing Hoseok wants to do, but he can't find the physical or mental strength to push the person off of him.   
  
The light is barely shining through the curtains, and the more Hoseok blinks his eyes awake, he sees the familiar recently dyed purple hair. He can't even fight off the big smile that appears on his face when he registers that Kihyun is on top of him, attempting to show affection.   
  
"Hey, sweetie," Hoseok says, voice scratchy from just waking up. "How's my baby shark doing? Why are you up at this hour?"   
  
Kihyun giggles and presses his nose further against Hoseok's cheek. "Seok!"   
  
"Yeah, yeah, I bet you're wide awake and ready to play, huh? Well, it's really early and Woo went to bed late, so why don't we go watch some cartoons, okay?"   
  
His brain is still struggling to process everything, but he doesn't want to miss a minute of Kihyun being cuddly. It's a rare occurrence these days; he prefers running around and practically yelling. Of course, he is cuddly when he is grumpy, but Hoseok prefers him smiling and giggling.    
  
Hoseok taps Kihyun's thigh. "Come on, baby. I'll even grab your paci and shark if you be a good boy and get up."   
  
Hoseok thinks he might actually die when Kihyun kisses his cheek before climbing off of him to stand on the floor, waiting like the good boy he rarely is. His heart feels like it might explode because finally one of the littles really loves him as a caregiver. They have always preferred Jooheon and Minhyuk, but for once someone is going out of their way to offer affection to Hoseok.   
  
He loves the littles so much.   
  
"You're being awful good today, Kihyunnie," Hoseok grins and stands up.    
  
He glances back at Hyunwoo's sleeping form before he decides to let the man sleep; he definitely deserves it.   
  
They are as silent as possible when they enter the other bedroom. Changkyun and Jooheon are asleep in Jooheon's bed, and Minhyuk and Hyungwon are asleep in Minhyuk's bed. There's a clear spot where Kihyun must have been lying in between them, Hoseok assumes based on that they aren't touching each other.   
  
Hoseok quietly takes Kihyun's shark plushie and his fluffy blue blanket off of the little’s bed before searching through the drawers for a pacifier. Without asking Kihyun, he decides on a red pacifier with a blue truck on it. He turns around to find Kihyun glancing at Minhyuk and Hyungwon.   
  
"Hey," Hoseok whispers. "You can lie down with them if you want."   
  
"Want Seok," Kihyun whines, his voice getting dangerously loud.

  
"Okay, okay," he holds the shark plushie out towards Kihyun, letting him take it. "Come on, let's go."   
  
Kihyun takes a minute, but once it registers with him, he grabs Hoseok's hand and practically drags him into the living room. They end up lying down in a weird position: Hoseok lying down with Kihyun on top of him, practically chest to chest, but the little's head positioned so that he can watch TV. Hoseok doesn't see how its in anyways comfortable, but he turns on the TV anyways and doesn't put up a fight. Kihyun's body is slightly heavy on top of him, but he pulls the blanket over them and slips the pacifier into the other’s mouth.   
  
He lets his mind wonder, stressing about the fact that he still has to go to the studio to work on a song. He will be free of Kihyun once Minhyuk gets up, he is sure of that much. Still, he doesn't want to give up time with the little.   
  
Hoseok forces himself to focus on being close to Kihyun and listening to him babble.

 

Hyunwoo stumbles into the room nearly an hour later.   
  
"Babe, go back to bed," Hoseok says, but all of his efforts are in vain.   
  
Kihyun climbs off of him and rushes to Hyunwoo. "Up! Up! Uppies!" He practically demands, though his voice is muffled by the pacifier.   
  
Hyunwoo smiles down at the little and picks him up like he requests. "I see someone is in a really good mood today."   
  
"More like incredibly clingy and young.." Hoseok laughs, watching as Kihyun lets go of his stuffed animal to wrap his arms around Hyunwoo's neck.   
  
"Is Kihyunnie in the mood for breakfast?" Hyunwoo asks.   
  
Kihyun eagerly nods, so Hoseok drags himself off of the couch and into the kitchen, following Hyunwoo. The leader places Kihyun on the counter, telling him it's an one time exception to the rule. Hoseok temporarily feels bad for Kihyun’s stuffed shark and makes a note in his head about its location.   
  
The little watches with big eyes as Hoseok and Hyunwoo start making pancakes. He is so occupied by it that he doesn’t even complain about being ignored.

 

Once they are done cooking, Hoseok moves him to sit in a chair in front of the table and sets a plate with two pancakes covered in syrup.   
  
Hoseok feels so stupid because before he can do anything, Kihyun is reaching to eat with his bare hands. The pacifier falls out as he opens his mouth, ready to shove as much food as he can into his mouth.   
  
"Kihyun!"    
  
The purple haired boy glances up with uneasy eyes, wondering if he is in trouble. There is a bit of a panicked look on his face, and Hoseok feels bad for startling him.   
  
"Can you let me feed you, baby? Look at your hands."   
  
Kihyun glances down at his sticky hands, then at Hoseok, before shoving a large portion of the pancake in his mouth. Syrup is all over his face, but he seems content so who is Hoseok to stop him from eating. Hoseok just sighs as Hyunwoo puts a plate of pancakes in front of him.   
  
"I really don't want to bathe him, Woo. You know he will just get messy again." He picks up the fork and sadly begins eating.   
  
Hyunwoo shrugs. "He is eating on his own instead of asking you to feed him, so you should feel thankful."   
  
"I like feeding him! It makes me feel needed. He always wants Minhyuk more than anyone else, but he likes me feeding him. And-" he interrupts himself. "Kihyun, baby, please stop trying to shove your fist in your mouth. It will not fit."   
  
The leader glances over and holds in a laugh when he sees Kihyun actually attempts to shove his hand in his mouth so that he can get the syrup off. With a grin, he grabs the little's wrists and gently pulls it away from his mouth.   
  
Kihyun immediately pouts, but he doesn't try to do it again. Instead, he resumes eating, making an even bigger mess of himself.   
  
Breakfast ends a bit too soon for Hoseok's liking, but he finishes just as Kihyun is attempting to lick his hands clean.   
  
"Alrighty, why don't we get you cleaned up?" He stands up, pulling the little by his shirt.   
  
Kihyun is reluctant to leave, but he lets Hoseok lead him to the bathroom. He shuffles from foot to foot, obviously getting impatient when Hoseok spends too long finding a washcloth and wetting it.   
  
It's a bit challenging to wipe Kihyun's face, but he manages to clean him (of course not perfectly) and wash his hands. Just as he is finishing, the door is pushed open more.   
  
Kihyun immediately pushes passed Hoseok to greet the intruder, and Hoseok turns around to see Changkyun sleepily standing there, rubbing his eyes.   
  
"Kyun!" Kihyun grins. "Kyun! Kyun! Kyun! Wanna play with Kyun and Seok!"   
  
Changkyun blinks, confused, before his brain registers that it's Kihyun standing in front of him. He seems to take a second before forming a response. "Tired."   
  
"It's okay, baby. You can go back to sleep or come join me and Kihyun in the living room."   
  
Uncertainty flashes in his eyes. Hoseok tries not to let it get to him; Changkyun still doesn't trust him or even want anything to do with him. It does bother him though. Changkyun can't help it of course, but he hasn't done anything wrong.   
  
"Kihyun," Hoseok says softly. "Why don't we let Kyun go to the bathroom? We can go wake up Joo! You want to do that?"   
  
Kihyun is quick to give up on the plan of getting Changkyun to play with him. He excitedly drags Hoseok into the bedroom and to Jooheon's bed.   
  
"Be nice, Ki," Hoseok reminds him because Kihyun's favorite way of waking people up is pulling on their hair. Its effective, but it's not the nicest thing to wake up to on a free day.   
  
Kihyun settles for shaking him and calling his name in his best whisper voice. When that doesn't work, Hoseok steps in.   
  
"Jooheon, Changkyun is awake and in the bathroom, but he is in little space. I don't know if he will be okay on his own."   
  
The younger's eyes flutter open to look between Kihyun and Hoseok. It obviously doesn't take him long to realize Kihyun is also in little space, especially since he still hasn't stopped shaking Jooheon.   
  
"Okay, okay. I'll go check on the baby. Why isn't Min up?"   
  
Hurt flashes in Hoseok's eyes. Isn't he capable enough of taking care of Kihyun? Is it that hard to fathom that Kihyun prefers Hoseok just for today? He understands that he doesn't get to baby them as much, but he doesn't appreciate Jooheon sounding like he is incapable.   
  
"Kihyun woke me up," Hoseok says calmly.   
  
"Oh."   
  
"If Changkyun is in the mood, I'll be in the living room with Ki. There is still pancakes in the kitchen if he is hungry."   
  
Hoseok doesn't wait for a response before he takes Kihyun's hand and leads him into the living room. He isn't 100% what he should do to occupy Kihyun, considering it's still early in the morning and he tends to be very loud.    
  
He settles on watching TV.   
  
He sits down on the couch, thankful that the cartoon from early is still playing. Quickly, Kihyun sits next to him and attaches himself to Hoseok's arm with his head rested on the elder.   
  
Hoseok has to keep himself from cooing, but his heart truly is melting at the sight of Kihyun cuddled up to him.   
  
Hyunwoo enters the living room and sits on the other side of Hoseok, an arm immediately wrapping around the younger's shoulders. "Kihyun seems calmer now."   
  
Hoseok laughs, leaning against the leader. "Yeah, that won't last long. I'm sure that he will be as loud as ever if Changkyun or Hyungwon comes to play."   
  
"Probably," Hyunwoo smiles gently.    
  
Hoseok settles his eyes back on the little next to him. Kihyun is happily grinning and giggling at the TV, and his arms never leave Hoseok. If anything, he seems to be getting closer to Hoseok as the show progresses.   
  
The peace doesn't last very long.   
  
Soon, Hyungwon is stumbling into the living room with Minhyuk following him. Hoseok suddenly feels self-conscious and wonders if Kihyun will leave him in favor of playing with Hyungwon or cuddling with Minhyuk. It wouldn't be surprising considering Minhyuk is his primary caretaker, but that doesn't mean he won't feel just a bit rejected.   
  
When Minhyuk sits on the couch next to Hyunwoo, Hyungwon immediately forces himself in between the elder's legs despite the fact that he has to sits on the floor. He presses his nose up against Minhyuk's knee, whining softly until Minhyuk starts the run fingers through his hair.   
  
"Kihyunnie?" Minhyuk gently calls. "You okay?"   
  
Hoseok himself is surprised Kihyun didn't attack Minhyuk the moment he walked into the living room, so he can only imagine how surprised Minhyuk must be. Still, Kihyun's arms are tightly holding onto Hoseok's arm like his life depends on it. He does glance over at Minhyuk before pressing himself closer to Hoseok.   
  
"Seok."   
  
Minhyuk raises his eyebrow, but a large smile appears on his face. "You're too cute for your own good, you know."   
  
Hoseok is immediately relieved by the fact that Minhyuk doesn't seemed bothered that Kihyun doesn't want him. The last thing Hoseok wants is tension in the group.    
  
"Is Changkyun and Jooheon up?" Hyunwoo asks.   
  
"Yeah," Minhyuk nods. "He is obviously in little space, judging by the fact that he put his head up Jooheon's shirt to hide from me. I doubt that they will leave the room anytime soon. Oh, has my baby eaten?"   
  
"Yeah. He ate earlier. There's food left if you want it."   
  
Minhyuk stands up and gently tugs on Hyungwon's hair to get his attention. The little rubs his eyes before standing up and following Minhyuk into the kitchen.   
  
"Hey, Kihyun," Hoseok whispers as to not scare the boy. When he has Kihyun's attention, he continues. "You can't just sit and watch TV all day. It's bad for your eyes, baby."   
  
The little shakes his head, pouting and gripping Hoseok's arm tighter. "Want Seok."   
  
"Okay, sweetie, I'm right here, but we can't spend all day watching TV, can we?"   
  
Kihyun shakes his head again, clearly irritated by Hoseok's idea of doing something else.   
  
"Hoseok," Hyunwoo speaks up. "I think he just wants to cuddle right now. It's probably not good to spend all day watching TV, but he might need it right now."   
  
Hoseok says quietly, "Why do you think he chose me instead of Minhyuk today?"   
  
"You're letting that bother you? You know he gets into these moods where he just clings to someone. Sure, it's usually Minhyuk, but remember there are 4 caregivers in this house. You're one of them. He trusts you to look after him and give him what he needs. Don't stress about small things, baby." Hyunwoo gently kisses the younger's cheek. "Why don't we watch TV a bit longer, and then we can play a game?"   
  
Hoseok frowns. "You know I have work to get done today at my studio. I'm really close to finishing the backtrack to a song. Maybe it's best if he does cling to Minhyuk because he can't rely on me."   
  
The room falls silent, and Hoseok feels like his heart is heavy in his chest. He would love nothing more than to cuddle Kihyun all day because he truly loves being a caregiver, but he does have to get work done eventually.   
  
There will be three caregivers once he is gone, which means Minhyuk will have to handle both Kihyun and Hyungwon, or Hyunwoo will have to help, not that the leader minds, of course.   
  
He lets his eyes focus on the TV and tries to clear his head.   
  
Hoseok hadn’t even noticed he fell asleep until Kihyun is whimpering in his lap, straddling him with his head pressed against the elder's neck. Instantly, he begins rubbing Kihyun's back, quietly shushing him.   
  
"Ki, what's wrong, baby?"   
  
Truly he is confused. Just a little while ago, Kihyun was giggling and smiling, but now he is being moody again. He doesn't even try to stop Kihyun from biting at his shirt. Right now his priority is to figure out what's wrong.   
  
He glances around the room to find everyone gone. Confused, he looks at the clock. Apparently he slept for nearly an hour.   
  
"Hey, you're okay, Ki. I'm here."   
  
Kihyun sniffles before mumbling, "Kihyunnie sorry."   
  
"For what?"   
  
"Broke."   
  
Hoseok looks around for any sign of Kihyun being destructive before he realizes the TV is turned off. The remote is lying on the floor.   
  
Either he broke the TV completely, or he is so deep in little space that he doesn't know how to turn it on.   
  
"If you broke it, it's okay. Can you get off of me for a second?"   
  
The little shakes his head.   
  
"Then, can you hand me the remote?"   
  
With teary eyes, Kihyun pulls away and reaches for the remote. He places it in Hoseok's hand.   
  
"Kihyunnie didn't mean to!! Tried to change it but it turned on something scary," Kihyun wipes his own tears away.   
  
"You tried to change channels?"   
  
He nods.   
  
Hoseok places his hand on the back of Kihyun's head to guide him to rest his head on the elder's shoulder before pointing the remote at the TV and clicking the "On" button.   
  
Unsurprisingly, the TV turns on. Like Kihyun said, the images on are screen are a bit scary, but Hoseok thinks he recognises it from a horror movie. Quickly he changes the channel back to the toddler's show.   
  
"Hey, look, I turned it on. You didn't break it."   
  
When Kihyun doesn't lift up his head, Hoseok sighs, defeated. He gets it. Kihyun always wants to be good, but he frequently gets into trouble. He doesn't try to, and this situation wasn't even his fault.   
  
"You're still my good boy, Kihyun. I love you."   
  
When Kihyun hears those words, his body goes limp against Hoseok's as he goes back to chewing on the other's shirt. Hoseok really should get Kihyun's pacifier, but he doesn't want to distress him.   
  
They stay like that for a while, up until Minhyuk returns to ask Kihyun if he wants to play.   
  
"Kihyunnie, don't you wanna come play with Hyungwonnie?"   
  
Kihyun whimpers and shakes his head. "Seok."   
  
"I have to go to the studio, sweetie," Hoseok tells him softly. "Why don't you want to go to Daddy? I have work to do."   
  
"No," he whines.   
  
Hoseok's heart practically breaks.   
  
On one hand, he really wants to finish up this song and present it to the company. On the other hand, Kihyun clinging to him is so cute, and he doesn't want to miss out on it. As much as he would love to hold Kihyun all day, he decides he has to be responsible.   
  
"Hoseok, you could probably go ahead and coax him into taking a nap since he has been up all morning. You can leave then," Minhyuk practically whispers.   
  
It's not like Kihyun would listen either way. He practically has selective hearing. Basically, he listens to what he wants, and if it's not the way you'd speak to a child, he doesn't listen.   
  
Kihyun is kinda hurting Hoseok's thighs from sitting on them and adjusting himself constantly, so Hoseok isn't exactly opposed to putting Kihyun down for a nap. He needs to be responsible anyways.   
  
"Yeah...yeah, I'll put him down in a few minutes. Could you get his pacifier? It's in the kitchen."   
  
When Minhyuk returns, Hoseok takes it from him to guide it to Kihyun's lips.   
  
Minhyuk sighs, "Has he been like this all morning?"   
  
Hoseok doesn't bother lying. "He only started to get really grumpy whenever you woke up, and then he thought he broke the TV. He was in a really good mood earlier."   
  
"I don't think I've done anything to him?"   
  
"It's probably just a bad day or something, you know?"   
  
Minhyuk nods. "He likes you a lot, if you haven't realized it. I know you've been working in the studio lately, and he does whine some days when you aren't around. Just a heads up, but I'm not sure if he will take it well when he wakes up and you aren't here. You know he only prefers me sometimes, not all the time, and that's okay."   
  
Hoseok smiles. "Thanks Min."   
  
Minhyuk pats Hoseok's head before heading back to his room, and Hoseok turns off the TV. He isn't sure how Kihyun can be comfortable sitting in someone's lap for so long, but he clearly seems content and not ready to leave anytime soon.    
  
He waits patiently until he is completely still. Kihyun is a light sleeper. Besides the youngest, he probably wakes up the easiest, so Hoseok tries to be extremely careful when he stands up, holding Kihyun as close as possible.   
  
He takes small steps when walking to Kihyun's bedroom. When he enters, he sees Changkyun and Jooheon playing with stuffed dinosaurs on Jooheon's bed, and Hyungwon and Minhyuk watching a movie on a laptop on Minhyuk's bed.   
  
Hoseok takes a second to realize Hyungwon at some point slipped back, and now they are watching some horror movie, cuddled up on the bed.   
  
Both of them glance at Hoseok and smile when they see Kihyun attached to him.   
  
"Hey, you wanna just put him in his own bed? Hyungwon and I can go watch this in Hyungwon's room where we won't bother him, and Jooheon and Changkyun can play in the living room." Minhyuk suggests.

  
Without Hoseok’s response, Minhyuk and Hyungwon still stand up and take the laptop off of the bed.   
  
Hoseok nods in thanks before approaching the bed. He tries to be as careful as he can when he gently places the smaller male down. He takes his time detaching Kihyun's legs and arms so that the little can lie on his back. Luckily, Kihyun doesn't wake up, even as Hoseok pulls his blanket over him and kisses his forehead.   
  
"I'll tuck his shark into bed with him in a bit," Hyungwon says to Hoseok. "You should go before he discovers you're gone. You know how much he hates sleeping alone."   
  
Hoseok runs his fingers through Kihyun's hair before stepping back and turning towards the door. "He's been such a brat lately."   
  
"Neediness and constantly requiring cuddles? That's just Kihyun in a mood. It gets worse by the longer the time period he hasn't been little," Hyungwon explains. "It's because he is always so responsible for everyone and everything, and when he is little, he doesn't want to do anything for himself. I get it."   
  
"We'll call if he freaks out," Minhyuk adds.   
  
Reluctantly, Hoseok says goodbye and gathers everything he needs to bring to the studio. It'll be another long night.   
  
-   
  
Hoseok is finishing up the chorus to the song when his phone rings. At first, he doesn't bother checking it. He guesses it's probably Hyunwoo calling and asking him why isn't he home. It's long past 8:00 P.M., and Hoseok has been avoiding doing anything besides working since he arrived.   
  
He answers it the third call.    
  
"What?"   
  
"Hey, baby," Hyunwoo's voice reaches his ears. "It's really late. Are you planning on coming home anytime soon?"   
  
"It's only nearly 9:00. That's not late."   
  
"Hoseok, you need to take care of yourself. And besides that, I miss you. Plus Kihyun misses you too."   
  
Hoseok drops his pencil and focuses his attention on the phone call. "Is he okay?"   
  
"Just throwing a tantrum, nothing new really. Minhyuk can't get him in the bath or to eat though, so there's that. I don't want to take you away from work, but it would mean a lot to Kihyun if you took a break and came home to put him to bed."   
  
Hoseok is shocked to say the least. Sure, Kihyun is known for tantrums, but it's surprising that he won't sleep unless Hoseok puts him to bed. He can only picture the idea of Hyungwon and Minhyuk struggling to get him to sleep, especially since recently he has been hiding under beds and in closets.   
  
"Yeah, of course. I love you."   
  
He doesn't need Hoseok to respond. He immediately hangs up and focuses on getting his bag together to leave.   
  
He is needed.   
  
-   
  
The dorm is quiet when Hoseok enters. The lights in the living room are off, but the kitchen lights are on. He decides to investigate the kitchen first.   
  
He finds Hyunwoo with Kihyun sleepily in his lap, slumped against him with his head on the leader's shoulder. Hoseok can tell Kihyun is awake by the way he perks up when Hoseok enters.   
  
"Hey, baby boy," Hoseok attempts to soothe him.   
  
When Kihyun looks over his shoulder to see Hoseok, the elder realizes that he has clearly been crying. He feels his heart break a bit more.   
  
"S-Seok."   
  
"I know, baby. I'm sorry for leaving you. I'm right here now though, so why don't we get some food in your tummy and then take a bath before bed? Doesn't that sound nice?"   
  
The little whimpers and shakes his head.   
  
"I know you're tired, but I also know you haven't eaten," Hoseok approaches the pair to run his fingers through Kihyun's hair. "Come on, I know you have had a rough day, baby, but you have to eat."   
  
Kihyun does look exhausted, and the pout on his face is evident. The white sweater on him has fallen off his left shoulder, and it hides his hands that clutch Hyunwoo's shirt. A red pacifier is securely in between his lips. Hoseok wants nothing more than to tuck him into bed.   
  
He hears footsteps, followed by Minhyuk's voice.    
  
"I was holding him earlier, but I had to get Changkyun and Jooheon settled into bed. I think he is just having a rough day. He hasn't been acting up other than refusing to eat," Minhyuk voice comes from behind. "He is trying really hard to be good, but I think he just doesn't feel well mentally right now. I'm worried about him, but little space is the only way he can cope. I'd rather him be a brat every day then have watch him destroy himself."   
  
Hoseok glances over his shoulder to see Minhyuk sleepily standing a few feet away. His hair is dripping, clearly signifying he is getting ready for bed. Instead of looking angry or upset that Kihyun has no interest in him, he is staring fondly at them with a soft smile.   
  
"I'll take care of him."   
  
"You better," Minhyuk grins. "If he doesn't mind too much, can you put him in bed with me? I don't think he is going to be happy in the morning when he wakes up and remembers that he was attached to you today. No offense, but you know how embarrassed he gets."   
  
"No problem, Minhyuk. I'll get the baby. Get some sleep, okay?"   
  
Minhyuk nods before leaving.   
  
Hoseok turns his attention to Kihyun, who is staring at him with wide, teary eyes.   
  
"Sweetie, come on, you'll feel better if you eat," Hoseok says softly as he sits down in the chair next to Hyunwoo. " What do you want to eat? It doesn't have to be big or a lot."   
  
"Want Seok," Kihyun whimpers, removing his hands from Hyunwoo to turn around and extend his arms towards Hoseok.   
  
"I know, baby, I really do," Hoseok sighs defeatedly.   
  
"He won't starve if he doesn't eat. If he really doesn't want to, he will be okay," Hyunwoo whispers.   
  
Hoseok gives in.   
  
He pulls Kihyun in his lap so that the little's legs are on either side of him and Kihyun is looking him in the eyes. He doesn't try to rest his head on Hoseok's shoulders; he simply clutches Hoseok's shirt in his hands and stares.   
  
"You've got to get a bath soon though, even if you don't eat. It'll be quick. I promise," Hoseok kisses his nose.   
  
Hoseok carefully pulls the pacifier out of Kihyun's mouth. Immediately he receives whimpers as a response.   
  
"You're okay, Ki. Let's go get you a bath."   
  
Kihyun rubs his eyes and slides off Hoseok's lap. "Paci."   
  
"You can have it when you go to bed. Hyunwoo, can you grab his clothes? I'll go ahead and start a bath."   
  
It's surprisingly easy to convince Kihyun to get into the bathtub once it's full. All Hoseok has to do is promise to sing to him when he gets out.   
  
Truthfully, it should be strange to be bathing a 24 year old, but Hoseok doesn't think anything of it. Kihyun is like a toddler in his eyes.   
  
He takes his time cleaning Kihyun. By the time he is done, Kihyun is struggling to stay awake as he extends his arms towards Hoseok.   
  
"I'm right here," Hoseok says softly.   
  
He helps Kihyun out and dries him off before dressing him in the t-shirt and boxers that Hyunwoo brought in. Only then does he let Kihyun wrap his arms around his neck and jump up, forcing Hoseok to hold him. His legs wrap around Hoseok's waist like this has happened a million times.   
  
Hoseok won't lie, it has happened a lot.   
  
Hoseok finally gives Kihyun his pacifier and sits on the couch.   
  
"I'll sing one song, and then it's time for bed," Hoseok tells him, though he isn't even sure Kihyun will stay awake long enough to hear the end.   
  
Hoseok gets through the first verse and chorus of Beautiful before he stops, noticing Kihyun is asleep.   
  
Carefully, he stands up and walks into the other bedroom. He sees Hyungwon and Minhyuk in Minhyuk's bed, limbs tangled and fast asleep. As much as he hates to, he pries Kihyun off of himself and lies him down on the other side of Hyungwon, next to the wall.   
  
He is too tired to do anything but shuffle closer to Hyungwon and whimper until Hyungwon wraps an arm around him.   
  
"You're okay," he mumbles, half-asleep.   
  
It's odd that Hyungwon woke up at all, but Hoseok remembers that this has happened all too frequently. Hyungwon's brain must be trained to wake up to Kihyun's whimpering.    
  
Hoseok clears his head and leaves the room, heading to his own room. Unsurprisingly, he finds his boyfriend on his bed. Hyunwoo is still awake though, and even sits up when Hoseok enters the room.   
  
"Is the baby asleep?" Hyunwoo asks softly.   
  
Hoseok pulls off his own shirt and jeans. "Yeah. He fell asleep easily once he was sucking on his pacifier."   
  
"That's nothing new. It always tends to make him sleepy."   
  
With a sigh, Hoseok sits on the bed. "Do you think its weird that he wanted me today?"   
  
"I think you think too much."   
  
Hoseok decides that Hyunwoo is probably right.   
  
He also decides that he should step up and be more of a proper caregiver.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As usual, I am still taking prompts for chapters.
> 
> Btw, please check out my other fics!!
> 
> Follow me on [twitter](https://t.co/dvZ6jEBdw6)! 
> 
> I'll follow back!!
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> Thank you for the support!


	21. Chapter 21

Kihyun wakes up feeling gross. He isn't sure why, but as his brain processes the situation, he becomes panicked.

First of all, he’s relieved he didn't wet the bed, but he does feel moist. It is way too hot under the blanket. Speaking of which, there is someone else under the blanket, connected to his arm and whimpering softly.

“Kyun?” He mumbles (although he is muffled by his pacifier) before sitting up and pushing the blanket to the floor.

He has no idea how he got into Changkyun’s top bunk, but more importantly he realizes that Changkyun is sweating a lot. Kihyun guesses he’s sick, but he isn't sure what to do. He should be big, right? Changkyun is sick and needs someone to care for him, and Minhyuk and Hyungwon are asleep in Minhyuk’s bed.

Kihyun tries, really tries, but he really can't manage to stay in his adult headspace. He is tired and feels irritable, and Changkyun is making him incredibly frustrated right now by not letting go of his arm. Kihyun wants one of the caregivers to hold him, but Changkyun should be the priority.

“Kyun!” He practically shouts, pulling his arm away from the other little and whimpering when he realizes how much it hurts to have Changkyun pulling back at his arm. With a pout, he rubs his arm and pushes Changkyun. Then, he pulls out his own pacifier and tugs his hoodie sleeves over his hands. “Kyun!”

(Truthfully, it sounds more like “Kun" than Kyun.)

Changkyun’s eyes open, and tears immediately form. Kihyun did push him after all, but he regrets it when he sees the other’s tears. He didn't mean to make Changkyun cry!

Like the responsible little he is, Kihyun decides he will take care of Changkyun himself. The room is still pretty dark, and there is no point in waking anyone up when Kihyun is perfectly capable of taking care of him. Besides, he doesn't want the caregivers to know he made Changkyun cry.

“Kyun, bath,” Kihyun insists, pulling on Changkyun’s shirt. 

“Don’t wanna!”

Of course in the end, Changkyun reluctantly sits up because he can't refuse Kihyun. Not when he pouts and keeps pulling at his shirt like an insistent little brother.

Kihyun looks over the ladder propped up on the side of the bed, and it looks a lot scarier than before. Was it always this tall?

He remembers falling off it a month ago when he was playing with Hyungwon, and from then on, they were banned from the top bunks.

Shoving his pacifier back into his mouth, Kihyun slowly makes his way down the ladder and safely reaches the floor. Changkyun reluctantly follows.

“Clothes?”

Changkyun stares at Kihyun for a moment before walking to the dresser and getting his own clothes. Kihyun watches in awe, completely shocked that Changkyun can do so much by himself. He picks out a black t-shirt and boxers before closing the drawer and turning to face Kihyun.

Kihyun grabs his free hand and practically drags him to the bathroom, ignoring the whimpers of protest when he sees Jooheon. He shoves the younger male inside and closes the door behind them. 

He sets his pacifier on the sink counter. “Shh.” He takes Changkyun’s clothes and sets them down, too.

Slowly, Kihyun approaches the bathtub and turns it on. He isn't sure what is too hot or too cold, but he decides on a decent temperature before closing the drain. He turns around and shrugs when Changkyun flashes him a confused glance.

“In,” Kihyun orders, pointing at the bathtub.

“Want clothes on,” Changkyun requests softly.

Kihyun takes the younger little by the hair and pulls, dragging him to the bathtub. Changkyun slowly climbs in and sits down with his clothes still on, and Kihyun smiles proudly, even though Changkyun looks absolutely miserable. 

Changkyun sits quietly as Kihyun settles down on the side of the tub and gathers water with his hands to wet Changkyun’s hair, despite that there is hardly any water in the bathtub in the first place due to how slow the water comes out. The younger little whimpers when the water his his head and slowly goes down to his face.

Kihyun remembers that he is supposed to cover his eyes! Minhyuk always does that when he washes Kihyun. How could Kihyun forget?

“Sorry, Kun.”

“Kyun,” Changkyun corrects him like he is Kihyun's older brother.

“I said that!” Kihyun shouts, splashing the water in anger although it doesn't do much. He covers his mouth quickly after realizing he screamed. “Shh.”

They sit in silence, staring at each other with wide eyes, waiting silently for a few moments before Kihyun decides no one is going to find them. He returns to his original plan of wetting Changkyun’s hair, but he uses one hand to cover the other’s eyes. This means he only has one hand to hold water with, and he frowns once he discovers his hands aren't big enough to perform the task effectively.

“Want Joo,” Changkyun complains.

“I can do!” Kihyun insists.

Changkyun pouts when Kihyun stands up and runs out. He feels gross and so sleepy. He doesn't need a bath, especially not from Kihyun, who is way younger than him! He can't even speak right. Changkyun should be able to go to Jooheon like he wants!

Before he gets the courage to get out, Kihyun is back with a red plastic cup.

He waves it around and smiles before sitting on the edge of the bathtub. Changkyun glances down to realize the water is getting dangerously close to the top, but Kihyun doesn't give it a second glance. He simply fills the cup with water and pours it on top of Changkyun’s head, causing it to splash everywhere, including on Kihyun.

“Kihyunnie!” Changkyun shouts, as water pours down his face once again.

“Oops,” Kihyun says shyly.

The little glances down at himself and frowns when he realizes his onesie is wet from more than just sweat. 

Changkyun panics when he registers that it is his hamster onesie. He doesn't always wear it, only when he is really little, but last night he cried until Minhyuk dressed him in it, meaning that he is going to freak out when he realizes he can't wear it anymore.

The older male’s eyes flicker from his clothes to Changkyun, and his bottom lip starts wobbling.

“Can wear wet clothes, Kihyunnie. It ‘kay.”

Kihyun slowly nods his head and without warning climbs in the bathtub with Changkyun, sitting with his knees pressed to his chest and facing the other.

Unfortunately, it makes the water overflow.

Changkyun doesn't have the energy to fight Kihyun any longer because his intentions are good, so he just lets the other wash him and flood the bathroom. Once Kihyun deems him as clean, Kihyun cleans himself.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps running end their peace. The door slams open, revealing Minhyuk with a panicked expression.

Changkyun knows they will be in trouble when Minhyuk closes his eyes and breathes in and out slowly to calm himself.

“Why?” Minhyuk asks softly.

“Sick!” Kihyun exclaims cluelessly, pointing at Changkyun.

Changkyun nods to confirm this. “Want Joo.”

Minhyuk approaches them and turns off the water. “Okay, sweetie. Let’s get you two out.”

“Daddy,” Kihyun whines, reaching out and grabbing Minhyuk’s white shirt with his wet hands. “Up.”

“Kihyun, be a good boy and take off your onesie. If you do, maybe Hoseok will watch TV with you!” Minhyuk encourages before turning his attention to the youngest. “Sweetie, can you undress for me? It’s okay. I just want to get you dried off and changed so you can cuddle with Jooheon.”

Changkyun feels his heart rate speed up. He is safe with Minhyuk, isn't he? Hyungwon and Kihyun always feel safe with him.

Slowly, Changkyun pulls off his clothes and gets out. He stares at the floor as Minhyuk dries him off and helps him into his clothes. His eyelids feel so heavy and his head is still pounding, but at least thanks to Kihyun, he feels less disgusting.

He finally lifts up his head when Minhyuk leaves to help Kihyun. Minhyuk opens the drain in the bathtub and smiles as Kihyun struggles with the buttons on his clothes. He reaches over and gently undoes the buttons.

Changkyun stares back at the floor and listens to the sounds of Minhyuk drying Kihyun and wrapping him in a towel.

“Want,” Kihyun whines, prepared to throw a fit.

“You have to wear dry clothes from the room, baby,” Minhyuk says softly. “Now, explain why the floor is soaked.”

“Helped Kun, but made mess.” 

Kihyun’s strong point has never been talking.

Changkyun speaks up. “Kihyunnie forgot to turn the water off.”

“You both know you aren't supposed to take baths without caregivers near.”

No one says anything more as Minhyuk leads them back to the bedroom. Once Minhyuk begins dressing Kihyun, Changkyun rushes to Jooheon’s bed.

“Joo. Hurts.”

Jooheon lifts his blanket and lets Changkyun curl up next to him with his head on the caregiver’s chest. “What hurts, baby?”

“Head. Throat.”

The caregiver reaches to the side table and grabs Changkyun’s green pacifier. He slides it in the little’s mouth before wrapping an arm around him.

“Minhyuk,” Jooheon nearly whispers. “Can you make him some tea and bring something for him to eat? Anything small will work.”

Minhyuk sighs. “They made a mess of the bathroom, but I guess I can hand off Kihyun to Hoseok and ask Hyunwoo to make tea while I clean up the bathroom.”

“Do you think Hyunwoo bringing tea in here is going to soothe him? He is already scared.”

“Maybe it'll make him less scared.”

Changkyun closes his eyes once he hears footsteps fading away. If he had the energy, he would ask Jooheon to check for monsters. He just hopes Jooheon will protect him if something happens.

\-------

Changkyun wakes up to someone shouting “Kun! Kun!” loudly next to him.

He isn't sure how long he was asleep, but apparently it was long enough for Kihyun to wash and dry his hamster onesie. His throat feels dry and scratchy, and his head is pounding more than before. Still, he forces a smile and pats Kihyun’s hand that is holding onto his arm.

As he gets more awake, he realizes that there is no one sleeping behind him, and Hyungwon is sitting at his feet.

“Joo,” he struggles to say, pacifier falling out of his mouth.

“You're okay, Kyun,” Hyungwon says softly as he squeezes Changkyun’s ankle in an effort to comfort him. 

Changkyun shakes his head and pushes the blanket off of himself. As soon as he sits up, Kihyun is sitting next to him, hands on his face.

“Stop,” Changkyun weakly protests. 

“Hot,” Kihyun confirms before taking his hands off the younger.

He knows Kihyun really does have good intentions, but he shouldn't be trusted to do anything really. Changkyun isn't mad at him; he is frustrated with the caregivers for not properly treating him. Isn't he supposed to trust them?

Changkyun stands up and rubs his eye. He turns around and offers a hand to both the other littles.

“Where?” Kihyun asks, reaching out and taking Changkyun’s hand.

Hyungwon grabs his other hand. Together they wander out of the room and into the living room, but they find it empty.

Changkyun tries to keep himself from panicking, but it appears that he is alone with the other two littles. Hyungwon could help take care of him, but he isn't a caregiver. More importantly, he wants Jooheon or Minhyuk!

He feels tears form at the corners of his eyes, and he doesn't try to stop them. In fact, it only takes a few seconds for him to start sobbing.

“Kyun,” Hyungwon quickly hugs him. “It okay.”

“Babies?” A voice calls from the kitchen.

“Woo!” Kihyun shouts excitedly, jerking his hand away from Changkyun.

The youngest little tenses up. Hyunwoo is tall and scary. His voice is deep and frightening too! Why did Jooheon leave? What about Minhyuk? Changkyun bites his lip and watches as Hyunwoo enters the room.

Kihyun rushes past him probably in search of Hoseok, and Hyunwoo glances between the two remaining littles.

He smiles. “Hey, Kyun. How are you feeling? Jooheon got called in for a sudden evaluation on his lyrics, but he will be back soon.”

Changkyun’s brain is telling him to hide behind Hyungwon, but he simply squeezes the other’s hand. Hyungwon would never let anything happen to him. As long as he’s there, Changkyun will be safe.

“Hurts,” he whimpers.

“What hurts, sweetie?”

The little points at his throat and head. He feels Hyungwon rubbing his thumb on the back of his hand, and it does help ease him. Hyunwoo won’t hurt him; he has never hurt Hyungwon before.

Hyunwoo motions for them to follow, and he leads them into the kitchen. Changkyun releases Hyungwon’s hand before sitting down at the table. He takes note of Hoseok at the stove cooking something with Kihyun hanging off his arm. It makes him realize how hungry he really is.

He rubs his eyes and yawns. “Please,” he says softly. 

Hoseok coos, “Baby boy, give me a second, and I'll get you a bowl. We didn't know Kihyun and Hyungwon went to wake you up, or I would have came in there.”

“Where Daddy?” Hyungwon asks as he sits down next to Changkyun.

“He had to film for a show, baby,” Hyunwoo reminds him, patting the top of his head.

Changkyun wants to complain that no one told him, but he doesn't want to get in trouble for talking back. Besides, he has no idea how Hyunwoo and Hoseok act anyways.

He watches patiently as Hoseok grabs a bowl and fills it with the light colored soup. The caregiver puts it in front of Changkyun before handing Hyunwoo a spoon. He smiles sweetly before returning to the stove to fill up two more bowls and set them down on the table.

Hyunwoo slowly sits on the other side of Changkyun. “Hey, Kyun. I'm gonna feed you, okay? It'll make you feel better.”

Changkyun glances at Hyungwon. He feels a lot better once Hyungwon smiles at him encouragingly. Then, he glances across the table at Kihyun settling down in Hoseok’s lap. With a soft sigh, he finally turns to Hyunwoo and opens his mouth.

“That's a good boy,” Hyunwoo softly praises as he gets a spoonful of soup. 

He blows on the soup gently before letting Changkyun close his mouth around the spoon. It feels really warm, and it tastes decent enough. He would like it better if it was Jooheon feeding him, but he is okay.

“Juice? Please?” Changkyun looks at Hyunwoo with a pout.

Hyunwoo is truthfully amazed at how cute little Changkyun is. He always saw him from afar, but seeing him up close is mesmerizing. He has a feeling Changkyun is soon going to have him wrapped around his finger.

He places the spoon down and moves to fill three sippy cups with apple juice. He puts the lids on and distributes them to each little. Before sitting back down, he pauses.

“Hyungwon? Are you okay?”

The little looks up and nods. “Wanna help.”

He could get Hyungwon to feed Changkyun, but he is feeling a bit selfish and wants to keep the little to himself. They’re bonding! He has never been super close with Changkyun, so he doesn't want to miss this opportunity.

“Why don’t you feed Kihyunnie? Hoseok looks like he’s struggling.”

In his defense, Hoseok really does look like he is struggling to hold the little and feed him. Kihyun is sitting sideways with his shoulder pressed against Hoseok’s chest, and Hoseok is still trying to get him to stop talking long enough to eat.

Kihyun really likes to talk even when he is little, but at least he isn't nagging.

Hyungwon nods and pushes his chair closer to Hoseok, and Hyunwoo sits back down.

Changkyun is still quietly sipping on his juice, and Hyunwoo feels like his heart might explode. He reaches over and gently pulls the cup out of his hand.

“Don’t drink too fast, baby. Let’s get some soup in your tummy, and then you can lie on the couch and watch TV.”

“With sippy?”

Hyunwoo has to keep himself from screaming. “Promise.”

In the end, he does keep his promise. After Changkyun finishes half of the bowl, he brings the little’s comforter into the living room and helps him get comfortable on the couch. The youngest stays quiet once Hyunwoo turns on the TV and gives him the juice.

Hyunwoo quietly sits on the floor scrolling through his phone. He occasionally glances up to see Changkyun with his eyes focused on the cartoons. Distantly, he can hear Hyungwon and Kihyun playing in their bedroom. He guesses they are playing with blocks because he hears something hitting the floor every so often followed by giggles.

The dorm feels more like home everyday.

\---

Changkyun doesn’t even realize he falls asleep until the front door opens. He jumps off the couch and runs to see who it is.

Jooheon is standing there, taking off his shoes. The second Changkyun realises it’s Jooheon, he runs hug him, hiding his face in the crook of Jooheon’s neck. The older male chuckles and wraps his around Changkyun. It’s warm, and Changkyun feels so much better already with him here.

“Hey, baby,” Jooheon greets him softly. “How are you feeling?”

Changkyun inhales slowly, cherishing the smell of Jooheon’s cologne. He takes a moment to re  
ply. “A little better.”

“You wanna tell me all about your day?”

The little lets go and steps back, nodding excitedly. When one of the caregivers are interested in listening to him talk, he feels truly loved. He takes Jooheon’s hand and pulls him towards the couch. Hesitantly, he sits on the couch, looking at Jooheon to make sure it’s okay. The caregiver sits down beside him and pulls the blanket to lie over both their laps.

Jooheon wraps an arm around the little, letting him snuggle against his side. “Now, what all happened?”

“Woke up without Joo, but Woo fed me. Got to watch TV, but slept.”  
“That’s okay, sweetie. You need your rest.”

Changkyun shakes his head. “Wanna play with Kihyunnie and Wonnie.”

Jooheon kisses the top of his head. “Another day, baby. Another day.”


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i could give you an essay on why I haven't updated, but I'm much too tired for that. Here's the simple explanation: school, lack of motivation, and work. Also depression. Anyways, read the note at the end?
> 
> This is short. I'm sorry.

“Bam!” Changkyun says, pointing his finger guns towards Kihyun, who is clueless.

“You have to die!” Hyungwon complains. “That’s how you play.”

Kihyun sits down, confused, and sniffles.

Both Changkyun and Hyungwon woke up that morning feeling a bit older, but Kihyun still isn’t feeling any older. He is still whiney and confused as usual. Minhyuk insisted on them playing with him, but they don’t have as much fun with him.

A blue pacifier is securely in his mouth, and he is wearing his hamster onesie. He even looks younger than both of the littles. He keeps whining, feeling uncomfortable without a caregiver. He isn’t any fun to play with!

Changkyun huffs. “Kihyunnie, go play with Min!”

“Are you guys being mean to Kihyun?” Hoseok walks by, scolding when he notices how upset Kihyun looks.

“He doesn’t want to play cowboys and aliens!” Hyungwon loudly whines. “It’s his fault.”

Hoseok rolls his eyes. “Don’t you need a third player though?” He doesn’t exactly understand how to play, but he is assuming.

“Can’t you play with us? Kihyun is a big baby! He wants to play baby games.”

The oldest member crouches down next to Kihyun, seeing how his face lights up once Hoseok is close. Kihyun reaches out his arms towards him and open and closes his fists in an attempt to get Hoseok to pick him up. Hoseok sighs and runs his fingers through the little’s hair.

“They are being mean to my precious baby, huh?”

Changkyun groans. “We aren’t! Why can’t we play big games while someone else plays baby games with Ki!”

Hoseok glances between Hyungwon, who is proudly standing with a toy gun and a cowboy hat, and Changkyun, who just looks annoyed. Finally, he looks at poor Kihyun as the little quietly whines through his pacifier.

At the sound of Minhyuk calling his name from the kitchen, Hoseok grins. “Does this mean you are too big to help decorate cookies?”

Both Changkyun and Hyungwon’s eyes grow wide. They both babble protests. Hyungwon quickly ditches the gun and cowboy hat, and Changkyun pulls off his blanket cape (?).

“No sirs. Put everything back up where you got them and wash your hands.”

Both males grab their stuff quickly and race into the bedroom, but Hoseok calls after them.

“No running!” He can’t help but laugh though. He shakes his head. “Ki, what are we going to do with them?”

With Hoseok’s help, Kihyun stands up and clings to the elder’s arm.

They have been so busy lately, so it isn’t a surprise that Kihyun is regressing to a younger age. It’s cute, of course, but he is a handful. It’s different with Hyungwon and Changkyun. They can be left alone for a few minutes, but with Kihyun like this, he still needs someone constantly.

“Come on, even you can help decorate cookies, yeah?”

Hoseok leads him into the bathroom and pushes him towards the sink. Although it’s a bit messy, they both wash their hands and dry them. It doesn’t take long to hear fighting coming from one of the bedrooms. The caregiver sighs and pulls Kihyun gently along with him as he goes to calm the situation.

“What’s the problem?”

He finds Changkyun holding Hyungwon in a headlock, and he has to hold in his laughter. At the sight of Hoseok, the youngest lets go and quickly apologizes. 

“Hyungwon said he was going to break my cookies!” He explains.

“It was a joke!”

“Please just go wash your hands, ok? Minhyuk worked really hard, and I’d hate to put two of my favorite boys in time-out.”

The pair quickly rushes past Hoseok and Kihyun, leaving them to slowly make their way to the kitchen.

On the counter and table are at least 3 dozen cookies with parchment paper underneath them. They are cut out in festive shapes, such as trees, candy canes, and stockings. It looks very festive compared to how Hoseok feels. Minhyuk really did work hard on making sure everything is perfect. There are various piping bags filled with different colored icings, some big, others small. On the table is a small plate with gumdrops and sprinkles.

Hoseok can’t help but grin when he sees the look of amazement on Kihyun’s face. He pats the little’s head and pushes him towards Minhyuk.

“Oh, you guys are-”

He is cut off by Kihyun roughly hugging him.

“We are here,” Hoseok finishes for him. “The other boys are washing their hands. I can’t believe you did this all for them...It looks like it took a long time.”

Minhyuk sets Kihyun on the counter, struggling to do so. “It-” he huffs, “it wasn’t easy, but you know I’d do anything to make them happy. Besides, we all deserve a day off. Where’s Hyunwoo and Jooheon?”

“I don’t know.” Hoseok hasn’t seen either of them all day, now that he thinks about it. He doesn’t dwell on it, though. “We can start without them.”

“I’ll take Kihyun, if I can get him to do anything,” Minhyuk laughs. “You can help the other two.”

“Something tells me you got the easier job,” Hoseok jokes as Hyungwon and Changkyun run into the kitchen.

Something still doesn’t feel right, though. He doesn’t like the feeling of Hyunwoo and Jooheon being gone. He brushes the feeling off, though, and turns around to tell Changkyun not to touch them just yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I need YOUR help to tell me what to write about. I'm about of ideas and there's so many comments I've lost all the prompts. So, please help me out if you want this to continue. Or, if you want another little space fic about someone else. Just tell me, yeah? 
> 
> My twitter is @ kihyuksdoormat, let's be mutuals. Sorry I changed twitter for personal reasons.
> 
> Anyways, comment ideas, thanks <3


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i took a break, but im kinda back? As requested. here's some changkyun/hyunwoo featuring a transition into the next chapter ;)
> 
> tbh i wrote this a few weeks ago and didn't bother looking it over, sorry not sorry lol im a shitty writer, wbk ok

Hyunwoo decides the worst to wake up is hearing someone shout an apology followed by loud sobbing.

He panics, sitting up from the bed and searching around for the source. “What’s wrong?”

He first suspects it's Kihyun because he is the crybaby of the group, and Hyungwon and Changkyun would certainly not be up that early, but as he looks around, he is proven wrong. In the corner of the room he sees the youngest little crying his eyes out. He looks so fragile and upset, his hands covering his eyes.

Why is he apologizing?

Hyunwoo can’t help but feel bad because Changkyun would never do anything to cause trouble, but he might just think that just because he is incredibly whipped for the smaller boy.

“Kyun, baby, you’re okay. I promise. What happened?”

Hesitantly, he sits down on the floor in front of the little. He gently tries to move Changkyun’s hands away from his face, but the little flinches away and cries even louder. Hyunwoo feels like he is a loss. He isn’t sure how to comfort without touching him; he has never been good at words.

“Changkyun, please calm down. I’m not mad, okay? You’re still my good boy.”

“I’m sowwy!”

Hyunwoo glances at Hoseok, hoping maybe he woke up, but sadly the male is still peacefully sleeping. What he needs is Jooheon, but getting help means admitting defeat. As the only little that acknowledges Hyunwoo half of the time, Changkyun is the one Hyunwoo wants to get close to. He can’t give up so quick. Losing precious time with Changkyun is at risk!

He takes a deep breath before speaking. “Changkyun. Come on, you’re okay.” He manages to say in a soft voice. “You’re okay, angel. Why don’t we go see what you did? Can you tell me?”

Changkyun shakily breathes out and stops crying so hard. “Hungry, but m-made mess.”

“You’re hungry?”

He nods his head.

“Let’s go clean it up, then I’ll make you a bowl of cereal.”

Changkyun shakes his head. “None.”

The caregiver stands up, confused. He was sure Kihyun ate cereal last night. “Let’s go find something else then, hm?”

The youngest member slowly stands up and stumbles, following Hyunwoo into the kitchen. He immediately hides under the table the moment they enter the kitchen.

It’s worse than Hyunwoo thought.

He always knew littles had the mindset of children, but he didn’t realize they can’t be trusted like children.

There is cereal all over the floor along with milk spilled everywhere, nearly to the doorway leading into the living room. Changkyun is crying all over again, and Hyunwoo is just impressed how he managed to make a bowl of cereal on the counter. It’s soggy by now, but still impressive.

“Changkyun?” He glances around, sighing when he sees the little crying softly under the table. “Guess I'm gonna have to fill up a sippy cup and give it to another baby boy, huh?”

Still no movement. 

Hyunwoo decides to brush it off and get to cleaning. He sweeps up the cereal and prepares the mop. It probably takes five minutes, but light-sleeper Kihyun comes stumbling in the kitchen just when he is almost done.

“What happened?” Kihyun mumbles.

“A lot. Changkyun made a bit of a mess, but I cleaned it up. You can go back to bed.”

He doesn't mean to sound rude, but he would like to have some time alone with Changkyun without another little or caregiver around. Does that make him selfish? Maybe a little, but he can't help it. He rarely gets time with the littles, especially Changkyun, and he isn't going to let anyone ruin their morning together.

Kihyun can take a hint, but he seems more than upset. 

Great.

Kihyun crawls underneath the table and grabs Changkyun hand. “Hey, no crying. Cute babies shouldn't cry. You're not in trouble, see? Woo isn't even mad! You hungry? Why don't we go into the living room while Woo cooks you something, hm?”

Changkyun dries his eyes and hesitantly nods. He follows Kihyun into the living room, leaving Hyunwoo amazed and alone.

Although Kihyun wasn't in little space, he still helped comfort Changkyun. He can't decide whether to feel annoyed or thankful. Surely he could've done that on his own, right? Still, he would've left Changkyun unsupervised while he cooked, so maybe it is best that Kihyun woke up to help.

Hyunwoo decides on making three omelets. It doesn't take him long to whip them up, and he puts two on normal plates and one on a small child’s pastel blue plate. He sets the plates on the table and wanders into the living room.

He finds Kihyun playing some shooting game on the PS4 while Changkyun is playing with blocks on the floor at his feet. He seems oddly calmer than before, and it's almost impossible to tell he was crying. They look like a caregiver and his little; it's a strange sight.

Hyunwoo finds it suspicious. It's unlike Kihyun to stay in his bigger headspace when someone else is little. Kihyun is definitely hiding something, but he decides to keep quiet. 

“Come on,” Hyunwoo quietly calls. “Let's eat.”

“After this game,” Kihyun tells him. “Go ahead, Kyun,” he says when Changkyun looks up at him with wide eyes. “Woo can feed you, okay? I'll be there in a minute.”

Changkyun jumps up and rushes into the kitchen, brushing past Hyunwoo. The elder can’t help but grin. Finally, some alone time with Changkyun.

He finds Changkyun eagerly waiting by the table. Hyunwoo picks him up and sits him in a chair, the way you would a child.

“Want me to feed you?” Hyunwoo asks, sitting down next to the little. 

He patiently waits for Changkyun to nods his head before he cuts a small piece of omelet off and raises it to the little’s mouth. He giggles and accepts it, grinning. 

This boy has Hyunwoo wrapped around his finger, he realizes as he continues feeding him. 

After a few minutes, Kihyun walks into kitchen and quietly makes Changkyun a sippy cup of milk. Changkyun doesn't even notice, just continues letting Hyunwoo feed him. He sets down the cup and sits down at the table. Kihyun stays silent as he eats, which is even more odd. 

“Kihyun?”

He chokes on his food. “W-what?”

“Something wrong?”

He clears his throat and avoids eye contact. “Nope.”

“Kihyun,” he says in a warning tone. 

If Kihyun doesn't tell him, he isn't sure exactly what he is going to do, but he will figure it out eventually.

Kihyun is Kihyun. It takes only a few seconds of intense staring to have him breaking down. He sighs and slams his hands on the table. “Fine! Hyungwon's been talking to his old caregiver, you happy? I spilled it, ok? Leave me alone!”

Hyunwoo watches Kihyun violently stab his omelette before standing up and storming off into the living room.

“What the fuck…?”

Changkyun whines softly, “Woo, why Kihyunnie mad?”

Hyunwoo doesn’t answer, still lost. Why would Hyungwon be talking to someone else when he has three lovely caregivers, one of them his boyfriend. Speaking of which, he has two boyfriends. Why isn’t that enough? Did they do something wrong?

Or is it nostalgia?

Distantly, they hear a door slam closed, evoking a choked out cry from Changkyun for being ignored.

“You’re okay,” Hyunwoo says softly, pushing the sippy cup towards him. 

His mind is racing though. How did Kihyun know that in the first place? Hyunwoo just wanted a peaceful day with Changkyun, but of course something came up. Something always comes up. There is seven of them; a peaceful day won’t ever exist. He isn’t complaining because he loves all of them, but sometimes being the leader and the responsible one is frustrating.

Changkyun quietly drinks out of the cup, seeming content. 

Hyunwoo leans back in his chair, soaking in the last few moments of peace before he has to confront the new issue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> o-ok i remade my twitter acc after leaving stan twitter for a bit so please follow me and i'll follow back thanks uwu also i need friends uM
> 
> twitter: @babykihyuk
> 
> i plan on starting a social media/text au soon? let's uh see how that goes lol
> 
> OH GO READ MY OTHER LITTLE FIC PLEASE THANKS


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